Tool
by AlyzaAnne0225
Summary: She didn't expect it to become like this. The longer she chose to ignore it, the harsher reality crashed into her in full force. Slow first few chapters. AU. Self-Insert OC
1. Chapter One: A New World

**This is honestly the first time I will write a Naruto fic. I don't know what else to say other than, please enjoy the first chapter of Tool. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any other thing that Kishimoto made but the OC's are mine.**

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**Chapter 1: A New World**

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I blinked owlishly as I stared at the glowing screen of my laptop, sleep trying to make its way into my head. It was the last chapter of a fanfiction I was quite obsessed about and I couldn't afford to sleep before I finally rest my eyes. I discreetly glanced at the bottom right corner of the screen and grimaced. It was already well past over four in the morning and I still wasn't asleep. When did I start reading this story again? Oh yeah, I think it was eight o'clock or something. So much for an otaku...

The story was based on the anime, Naruto, with all the ninjutsu and stuff. Frankly speaking, I wasn't that fond of the anime but the stories in fanfiction about the damn anime were impressive so I found myself leaning to the fan girl side whenever I finish a story. I was tempted to watch the anime so I could see if it will snatch my interest but I was too lazy to look it up in the internet. Besides, my friend told me that it was a bit mainstream so I shouldn't watch it. Yeah, like I know what mainstream means. All I know about the freaking anime are: one, there are freaking ninjas who have freaking supernatural powers that normal human beings shouldn't have; two, the freaking ninjas have chakra which I concluded served like energy in them; and three, there's a girl who has a bizarre hair color who's obsessed with the color pink. Yeah, I really don't know a lot about them besides the fact that it's supposedly an amazingly popular anime that everybody knows in the entire universe. Alright, I'm exaggerating. But can you blame a sleep deprived elementary school girl who stayed up late just to finish the story she's reading? Yeah...you can but don't.

On top of that, I have school this morning so I only have two hours left before my aunt picks me up for school so I really shouldn't be reading a story. But hey, it's not like anyone can reprimand me. Both my parents are outside the country and it's not like they would suddenly come home and say, "Hey,we're home. Why are you still awake?" or something along those lines. All they care for is money anyways so they don't really have a say on the matter. I yawned as I posted a relatively long review. The story was interesting in its own right. It was about a girl who died and was given a second life in the world of freaking ninjas. Yeah, talk about lucky. You may as well forfeit your own life if you go there. Not like that's possible. I mean, come on! We all know we're going to heaven or hell after our death when Jesus comes back. Wait, am I the only one who knows? Nah, that can't be possible. Anyways, having a second life in a fictional universe is just impossible. I would probably believe it if it was a reincarnation or something in the real world like Kagome and Kikyo but that anime was also too unrealistic. But hey, who said all anime have to be realistic? Yeah, my damnable father did. Stated that I shouldn't waste my time in watching anime and study. The fuck? I was already second in the graduating class and he STILL wasn't happy about it? Give me a break! I'm not a robot for god's sake!

Ahem.

Anyways, I should relieve you of my rants and continue on my ever so wonderful slumber. Yeah, you should wonder why a slumber would be wonderful. Because its WONDERful. Get it? Haha... Yeah, I'm a bad joker so please don't rub salt on my fatal wounds. They've already faced the torture enough times in a lifetime. Oh shut it subconscious, I still want to rant here. You aren't allowed to sleep until I give you the signal. Deal? No? Why not? Fuck no! I just went into the bathroom a while ago! Yeah, you're right... I should go, just in case it leaks...where were the switches again? Oh yeah, they're just beside me. Thanks for the tip nonetheless. Yeah, I probably sound like a psychopath who talks to her subconscious like a fucking psychological disaster. Hey, is it just me or am I seeing THOSE things too? You know, those spiritual beings that have no feet or whatsoever? Yeah, I'm just kidding. Like I believe in those kind of shit.

Realizing that I was spaced out in front of my laptop, my eyes still fixated on the review I sent, I doubled over and hit my head on the ever so wonderfully soft matress. Ow. That hurt. Who knew landing on your skull on a marble tile was so fucking painful? I surely hell didn't. Until now I guess. Man, I've already spent too much time in my thoughts. It's already five o'clock. I'm in serious trouble now. Do I have eye bags now? Gosh, I hope not. I've already had enough of all the teasing from my friends. They said I look like L from Death Note. And they call themselves perfectly 'sane'. Shit. I'm in my thoughts again. God, my head hurts. I'm going to ask my parents for a soft and thick carpet beside my bed when they arrive. I can't involve myself in such accidents like this. My brain cells might decrease. Anyway, it doesn't look like I have time to take a nice warm bath so I decided for a shower instead. Man, that shower was cold with a capital C. Preparing myself for summer school doesn't really take that long. But forcing myself out from my thoughts does and I have no doubt that my thoughts are the main problem why my aunt is now trying to destroy our front door.

"Young lady! Come out here right this instant! I've had enough of your excuses young lady and I can't afford to be late on my business meeting!" she bellowed in her rage. I winced. Aunt Ran had always had such a loud voice. I briefly wondered whom she inherited it from. Mother was soft spoken so I didn't understand why aunt Ran is not. One of the many wonders of the world, I guess. No seriously. It's really a mystery for me.

"Young lady!" and another round of 'knocks' were heard. I swear I heard the door crack a bit. My aunt had always been so strong and her knowing martial arts was no help in that matter. I sighed and licked my fingers before opening the door. Only to be crushed in a vice-like grip from my ever so gorgeous aunt.

"G-give, give! I can't breath...!" I struggled forming words and at once, the arms around me loosened and I was just held by my shoulders as I took in much needed oxygen. Gosh, who said aunt Ran hated physical contact? They are so dead wrong. The woman was trying to strangle me for Christ's sake! I coughed as I tried to get my bearings. Oh man, I think I have to take some medicine...

"You are late! We are going NOW! No excuses!" she exclaimed, dragging me by the wrist to her car. Aunt Ran, please remind me to take the bus to school tomorrow. I thought in much misery. I sighed as I snatched my wrist away from her grip. She looked at me with sharp green eyes and I snorted.

"I can walk by myself, thank you very much," I commented, trying to gracefully stride to the unsuspecting car...not that I succeeded though. I nearly tripped on my own two feet just a feet away from the car and heard my aunt hold back a laugh as she averted her eyes away from me. I merely sneered at her and opened the car door.

And the unexpected happened.

As I opened the passenger's door a sudden rush of air passed my face and was sucked into the car. I was confused for only a mere millisecond before all color left my face. I have learned of this situation in a random book from my father's study. I never thought I would experience one myself. I turned around and started to make a run for it but my hand was stuck to the handle like it was glued. My eyes widened as I took in the image of the green substance underneath my fingers. It was a super glue manufactured by my aunt's company. I turned my head to my aunt to ask for help but all hope escaped me as I watched her lips form into an ever so pretentious smirk. The last thing I saw was her waving at me from my house's doorstep...before the car exploded.

Really, I should have seen this coming.

I've always prided myself in my intuitive skills since my friend pointed it out. Things just come to me like breathing and I always know whether I'm in trouble or not so I always avoid causing trouble with my fellow human beings. But none came to me that particular morning. I guess my bad luck override my intuitive skills or lack thereof. I coughed fervently as I tried to feel my hands. I nearly gasped if it weren't for the fact that I've already got too much smoke in my system at the sight my right hand. It was literally burned to the point that I could see my bones. I've always thought that bones were pure white as they described to us in school. But I guess I was wrong since I was sure that I'm seeing a yellowish color right now. If it weren't for the running pain throughout my body, I would've puked. My right hand was now out of commission. And I wouldn't be too surprised if my body will be out of it as well. After all, who survives such an accident? Well I wouldn't really call it an accident since my aunt just tried to kill me for reasons I didn't know. Really, I'm surprised I can even think in this kind of situation. Oh well, my friend always said that I was too relaxed with my life. It doesn't surprise me that I'm taking dying so well. I must've hit my head on the cement or something but I'm positive I have a concussion. My eyes widened as I clutched my chest, a torturous feeling in my lungs. This is it, huh? Can't say I don't have any regrets. I breathed deeply one more time before I felt consciousness slipping out of me.

...I wish I could've watched Naruto.

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What is...this? It feels slimy and...it smells like blood? I opened my eyes to see what I was touching but darkness just engulfed my sight. Huh? Why is it so dark? I tried to sit up but something large lifted me from where I lay. Now I'm starting to get confused. What the hell is this thing that's touching me? And why can't I move? I struggled to sit up but I just can't seem to gather the strength to do so. What the hell is going on? One moment I'm dying and now I don't have a clue to what's happening around me! I felt tears well up in my eyes and I resisted the urge to delve in my thoughts as I tried to focus in the sounds around me instead.

"You did a great, ma'am. It's a healthy baby girl..." someone commented. I furrowed my eyebrows-or at least tried to- as I puzzled over the language the person was speaking in. It seems quite familiar but it sure as hell couldn't be English as I couldn't understand it. Wait, it's on the tip of my tongue but I can't seem to remember it...

"My baby...Look, Tokuma. She has your eyes..." a soothing voice just whispered as I felt another pair of hands around me. Wait, when did I conclude that they were hands? Anyways, unlike the cold hands that first held me, this pair is so warm... I felt my uneasiness slip off my thoughts for a bit before returning just from the mere caress I felt on my cheek. Why was it so warm? I felt safe and content as the person who was holding me whispered unintelligible words with that strange language. My eyes snapped open as I recognized it. It was Japanese! Why would anyone be speaking in Japanese in this part of the world? Why- my thoughts were cut short as another pair of hands held me firm.

I paled when I realized how big these hands were. Was I being held by a giant or something? I felt tears well up in my eyes again and I didn't have time to hold myself back as I cried out loud. Now this is surprising. Why am I crying? I've never once in my whole life, cried in the presence of someone else. Why would I start now? The hands that were holding me shifted a bit as I felt panic radiate from the person holding me. "A-ah! Does she not like me? What should I do, Youko?"

A slight chuckle resounded inside the room and I immediately stopped crying as I relished the voice. I don't understand what is happening but I could tell that it had something to do with hospitals. Why, you ask? Because this place just reeks of the damn medicines.

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My second memory was when I was three months old. I took a guess when I focused my eyes on two faces, both unfamiliar to me. It was of a man and a woman. It didn't take long for me to figure out that they were a couple, probably married even. The man had long black hair falling down to his waist and the warmest coal black eyes I've ever seen. He was radiating pure kindness and affection that I found myself resisting the urge to touch his face as he leaned closer to me. His smile was so simple and serene that I briefly wondered if he was a girl. But his features said otherwise. The woman picked me up and lay me on her lap, helping me sit up. She had bright red hair to which she had tied into a high ponytail and blue eyes that held happiness and determination. Her features were with a wide grin as she caressed my head. I felt warm to the touch and leaned against it, asking for more. I could tell that they found my action pleasing as the man joined in the activity.

I felt a grin paint my features as I waved my hands to the man as he smiled at me. But as my gaze fixed on my arms, I paused, realization sinking in my mind. I tore my head away from the hands and looked at my body to the best that I could. It was extremely difficult to crane my neck without falling forward but I had seen enough to arrive to one conclusion. I was a freaking baby.

I cried.

I cried so hard that moment that the couple that I guessed were my parents rocked me and whispered reassuring words at my ear, attempting to calm me. But I couldn't. This was too much! I tried to recall the last memory of my past life but found nothing but smoke and flames burning my body. It traumatized me. I didn't even remember my own name! Oh how badly I wished to have been just sent to the spiritual realm than be reborn and live another life. The least they could do was to erase my knowing that I had a past life. Then I guess I could live another life. But guess what? I still retain these worthless memories of a fire! Was I in a burning building or something? Did I die from fire? Somehow, I had a feeling that I would be very, very, frightened of fires from now on. I don't know what came to me but I flicked my eyes on a figure who was sitting at my right as I felt something rubbing my spine. When had I been passed on to another person? This person's hands were gloved and cold. I didn't like that. I wanted something warm like my parents. Yes, I am going to call them as my parents from now on. But as soon as she did that, I was quickly lulled to sleep.

"Shizuka..."

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When I was four months old, I finally figured out what my name was through strenuous exercises with a pen and paper. My name was Uchiha Shizuka. Somehow, the name 'Uchiha' made me wonder if I've ever heard of it before in my past life. But the name was undoubtedly Japanese in origin and I was...well, I somehow knew I didn't live in Japan before since I couldn't understand their language. But it could also be some aftereffect from the reincarnation so I didn't put much thought to it. I spouted some words that I recognized as english in origin albeit somewhat incomprehensible.

My mother, who I now knew as Uchiha Youko, immediately taught me the basics of the Japanese language. Her red hair somewhat reminded me of something in my past life and just related it to the bright red orange image I always had nightmares of. In just a few months, I learned the Japanese language. At least the basics. My father, whose name was Uchiha Tokuma often went into disappearances for somewhat long periods of time. I once consulted my mother about this matter when I learned how to write legibly. I couldn't speak quite yet as my vocal cords were still developing like any seven month old toddler would. She grinned warmly at me and took out her own sketchbook. Father bought us this handy dandy books when he saw us communicating by writing in his 'precious' scrolls. I didn't really understand what was so important about those scrolls at first. But then he explained that they were summoning scrolls and that I shouldn't touch them without his permission. Mother received a good lecture also from the man but she sat through with it with her usual grin. I wondered when I have seen mother drop her grin. And I was brought into this conclusion: never.

"Shizuka, do you know what a shonobi is?" she wrote on the worn out sketchbook when I finished asking the question. Shinobi? As in those ninja who throw shurikens and kunais for assassination? Somehow, I doubted that was the case so I shook my head. In the case of yes or no questions, I only needed to nod or shake my head as an answer. She understood and continued on writing.

"Well, shinobis are those who are loyal to the village they serve in. They serve as the protectors or guardians of our village. In our case, I and your father are two of the numerous shinobis who serve Konoha. We are given missions by the Hokage to preserve the peace here in Konoha. Do you understand? And now-" she was about to write more but when she saw my shaking hand on top of my own sketchbook in a poise to write, she stopped and looked at me intently. I slowly wrote what I was about to inquire, careful to not make any breaking lines like I was taught to. But as expected, I didn't do as well as I wanted and a few break in lines were seen. But I suppose it was an achievement because I vaguely remember not being able to write in my language until I was at least three years old in my previous life. I scrunched up the bridge of my nose at the thought. I briefly wondered if my life here is better than my previous one but decided I didn't even remember anything of my previous life so I shouldn't judge blindly.

I turned back to my writing and read it. "Do you mean that father is in one of those 'missions' now?" She chuckled and nodded before turning to her sketchbook.

"You are a smart girl, Shizuka. Although I know you're just a few months old, when I look in your eyes, I see someone so much older," she wrote once again and I found myself giggling at her comment. Oh, how right she was.

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When I turned a year old, I already knew how to walk and even run without help and I prided myself on the fact that I could outrun my pregnant mother. Of course, she was pregnant and couldn't really that fast but she was just a few months in and the bulge in her stomach was hardly noticeable. I was ecstatic at the fact of having a sibling! I wondered what kins of games we could play and chuckled to myself as I once again escaped the grasp of a slightly frustrated Youko.

"Shizuka! Get back here this instant! How dare you eat my ramen! Do you even know how unhealthy that is?" she roared, struggling to keep the baby safe and maintain a pace that could catch me. I laughed good naturedly when she bit her tongue, laughing at her silly antics.

"I'm sorry, mom! But something tells me that ramen is not exactly a healthy food for pregnant women either!" I retorted, appreciating that I learned how to speak a few months prior.

I giggled as I turned around a corner, fully expecting an empty hallway to run through. I didn't expect another person to bump into though. I let out a yelp as I was momentarily thrown backwards, desperately regaining my balance afterwards. Woah. That was close. I turned to apologize to the person who I bumped into but surprised coal black eyes stared back at my navy blue ones. I stared for another second before being snapped into reality by my mother's furious footsteps behind me. I panicked for a moment and decided to keep my apology short. "I'm sorry for bumping into you! See you!" I blurted out without thinking before jumping out of a window. I saw a glimpse of a thoughtful pair of eyes directed at me before landing on the grass clad surface as I leaned on the wall, trying to keep silent as much as possible. Mother would never expect me to jump outside of a window. Not like any one year old can anyway. I just really like windows and spent a lot of time on them for my entertainment. And that meant a reasonable amount of experience from falling out of windows.

"Shizuka! Watch your steps, young lady!" she roared once again, her voice echoing throughout the hallways. I briefly wondered why hasn't anyone pressed us for that. No one can certainly ignore such loud voices inside the compound. Then her roars ceased, making me panic as I thought that she found me already. She often did that just to make fun of me when she actually catches me. She commented about my poor hearing skills but I countered with the fact that she was a kunoichi so she really shouldn't make any noise. I prepared myself to the attack but opened my eyes wide in shock to what I heard.

"I-I apologize for my mistake, Itachi-sama!" she apologized meekly and I reeled back my head at the initial direction of where I came from in shock. What had happened?

"Hn. It's alright, Youko-san. I don't mind." a calm voice replied and I immediately observed the unfamiliar voice. It was slightly childish and the way the words were spoken, I guessed that the speaker was at least ten years of age. My thoughts went back to the boy with surprised eyes who I bumped into. Was he ten years old? I didn't really see what he looked like but he wasn't any taller than me more than at least a few inches, I think. I licked the tip of my ring finger in absolute confusion. There was a few sounds heard inside and I flattened my ear on the wooden wall as I tried to hear what would transpire next.

"By the way, Itachi-sama. Have you seen a one year old girl pass by through here? She has a straight red streak at the left part of her hair," my mother questioned and I stiffened. I immediately recognized myself in her description and wondered if this Itachi-sama would answer her. I hoped not so I could continue this game and have some more fun for another few hours before I finally rest. A slight chuckle resounded and I briefly wondered who the boy was, judging from the tone.

"I must say I have not seen anyone pass by me, Youko-san," he responded and my eyes widened slightly. Well, that answered my question to whether it was the same guy as before. I wondered where the guy went off to since the time between me and my mother's arrival at that same hallway weren't that far apart but pushed the thought away.

"I see...Well, if you see anyone with that description, please tell them that I want her back home as soon as possible. Good day, Itachi-sama," she responded before I heard her footsteps fade away into the distance. Just in case, I stilled and waited for at least until ten minutes before sighing in relief.

"Why are you hiding?"

I jumped at the voice beside me and turned my head, only to bump foreheads with a certain Uchiha. With a groan, I fell backwards again, this time unable to maintain my balance as I held my forehead. Why am I bumping into people so often today? Well, you can't really call two times often but hey, bear with me for a little while please. I opened my eyes and once again met coal black eyes with hints of amusement in their deepest chambers. Don't ask me how I knew. I just knew. It was the boy I bumped into earlier considering the pair of eyes resting on mine. In surprise, I pointed a shaky finger at him with a pathetic glare.

"Y-You! What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to calm by beating heart out of the surprise. It was extremely hard to do but I had no choice if I didn't want to embarrass myself. Sometimes, I forgot that I was only one year old in this world and not an awkward twelve year old girl. He smiled at me and stood up before offering a hand out to me. I stared at the hand in confusion. What did he want me to do?

Oh, I get it! I tore a few grass at my side and placed them on his outstretched hand before standing up myself. I watched him as he stared at the grass on his hand like they grew two heads or something along those lines before chuckling and dropping the grass at the surface beside his feet. I glared at him. "Hey! Don't throw away something someone gave you! And wasn't it you who asked for them in the first place?" I growled, glaring at him with the best that I could muster. He responded with a snort and smiled at me.

"I'm Uchiha Itachi. You are?"he asked and I groaned once I realized that he didn't answer either of my questions. Really, I don't have the patience to be dealing with this guy.

I frowned and glared at him, attempting to swipe that smile off his face. But when it didn't work, I mentally winced, deciding to brush up on my intimidation skills. "What makes you think I will answer your questions when you don't even answer one of mine?" I asked again, trying to act brave as I wanted to both run off and kick this guy's ass to home. He merely stared at me with that goddamn smile on his face. I am not going to lose. I am NOT going to lose. I am not going to LOSE. Okay, I am losing... "Uchiha Shizuka..." I muttered quietly before stiffening as a deafening scream tore my eardrums.

"YOU! What are you doing with my nii-san?" a voice behind me shrieked and I couldn't help but notice the fact that this voice was cute. As in childish cute. I turned around and met face to face with a fuming Uchiha. I stared at almost the same coal black eyes except this one was much more expressive than the last. I gaped like a fish at him, wondering why he was so angry. While still in my thoughts, I didn't notice that he was preparing to jump me before he really did the said action.

A rustle behind me and I found myself watching as the boy who called himself Itachi pulled the fuming boy off me. I stared at him with wide eyes, surprised at how fast his expressions could change. One moment he was looking at me with such venom I didn't think was possible while the next he was grinning and looking at his brother with an entirely different air around him. Wait, brother? So this weird boy was Itachi's sibling? Huh? Why are the two of them so confusing?

Itachi smiled back at his brother before turning his gaze on me. Immediately, I felt the all too familiar glare fix on me again. "Sasuke," Itachi started and at once, the glare was gone and all that was left was a grinning boy who seemingly has no problems of being lifted by his collar.

"Yes, nii-san?"

"Apologize to Shizuka-san right now," Itachi ordered and Sasuke gaped at his older brother in surprise. A moment later, a more venomous glare was directed at me and I merely flinched in response. What the heck did I do to arrive at this situation? I only wanted to hide from my mother for at least an hour until curfew! But no! These two boys who seem to be brothers interrupt my grand master plan and now I'm being stared at like garbage! Oh God, save me...

Sasuke, as I heard from Itachi, growled at me before lowering his head in a reluctant manner. I think it took all of his dignity to just bow his head like that. "I apologize for my unforgivable behavior to you, Shizuka-san..." he apologized while subconsciously gritting his teeth in hesitance. I barely successfully stifled a laugh at him. So cute! I think I loved kids in my past life because I certainly think I still love them now. Itachi nodded in what seemed to be satisfaction as he placed Sasuke back on the ground.

"Better. Now, Shizuka-san, this is Uchiha Sasuke, my younger brother. He's two years old," Itachi introduced his brother to me and I grinned at the two yer old boy. So he was a year older than me then? That makes this a little bit weird because I thought he was cute when I was a year younger than him. No matter, my mind was far from a one year old's. Sasuke just glared at me with his eyes narrowed down into slits.

"Sasuke, introduce yourself." The raven haired boy pouted and crossed his short arms over his chest.

"...Uchiha Sasuke. Two years old and I don't want anyone to occupy nii-san's space other than me!" he intended the last part for specifically myself and I sweat dropped, speechless. Itachi just chuckled and looked at me before raising an eyebrow. I took it as a sign to introduce myself as well.

With the best smile I could muster at the moment, I bowed and opened my mouth to speak, "Uchiha Shizuka. One year old. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sasuke...sama?" I added the last part hesitantly, remembering what my mother called Itachi. Why were they called with that honorific anyway? Were they some important people in the clan? If so, then who exactly were they to receive such treatment? Sasuke beamed when he heard the certain honorific after his name and I briefly wondered if I should stop calling him that just to see his reaction. He looked at his older brother with a wide grin and I felt his mood get better almost instantly. Wow, was this kid just that easy to please? I wonder what would happen if I called him God. I really want to know. Maybe I should try it the next time we meet; provided we meet at all of course.

"By the way, nii-san! You told me that you were going to teach me how to throw those stars like you and father do! Let's go!" Sasuke insisted and grabbed Itachi's arm, trying to drag him away. I raisds my eyebrow at Itachi and he just smiled at me. Stars? Did he mean shuriken? I read it at some scroll that my father left in his room. God forsake this boy. Mother said they were extremely dangerous and sharp to use! As I was not familiar with their frame, I refrained from touching one less I injure myself. I could just imagine my mother's rage if I injured myself. For sure he would blame it on father as he was, after all the one who left it at home where I had access to it.

"It's called shuriken, Sasuke. And it isn't polite to leave without saying a word to a person you've just met," Itachi commented and he pulled the boy back before turning him around to face me. Sasuke stared at me with wide eyes and I stared back. In a few moments, we were involved in a staring contest, waiting to see who would blink first. I could tell that Sasuke was having difficulty in keeping his eyes open while my eyes were getting watery at the same time. Before long, Itachi coughed and we both blinked at the same time. At least I think we did because Sasuke sure didn't think so.

"Aha! I won!"

I turned my eyes at him, oozing with innocence. "At what did you win, exactly?"

He just blinked and growled as I tried to hide my giggles. No doubt he's thinking that he was the only one who thought we were having a contest.

Itachi seemed to have more than enough amusement from the two of us as he bowed. "See you, Shizuka-san. Your mother wants you home as soon as possible as you have heard from earlier and we've been keeping you long enough. I suggest you go home now for it is nearly curfew for all children in the Uchiha Clan."

I moaned as I remembered my mother. I'm looking forward for the punishment that's surely awaiting for me at home. Note the sarcasm. "Yeah, thanks for reminding me, Itachi...sama. I'm going home. See you, Sasuke and Itachi-sama!" I bid goodbye, purposefully leaving out the honorific after Sasuke's name. I glanced back at the raven haired boy and he was just staring at me with the same pair of eyes with unreadable emotions swirling inside them.

That was the first and last time I met the brothers with ignorance.

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The second time I met them, I was three years old and was practicing how to throw kunai and shuriken on the dummies my father made for our family. They were old and worn down but they worked and that was enough for me at that moment. I was in one of the Uchiha training grounds, the one which was closest to the main house. Father said that it was the best one for weapon practice so I headed here every time I wanted to hone my skills. This has been going for at least four months and I think I've got the natural talent for weapons, something my father was surprised about. At my first try, the kunai I threw didn't even come close to the wooden dummy. In fact, it was thrown backwards. I still could remember my father's surprise at that.

Father was a weapons specialist so he thought I would be too. Unfortunately, I was not so he just thought me of the basics.

Anyways, I was readying myself to throw a kunai again but when I let go of the weapon, another kunai came flying at the kunai and was pinned down to the wooden board at my left side with my kunai. It hit dead center. I looked at it with dazed eyes for a moment before looking at my right, wondering where the kunai had come from and why anyone would disrupt my training.

"Wow! You're so cool, nii-san!" an all too familar voice commented, causing me to delve back into my memories to search for the owner of that voice. When I found none, I was looking at two boys, one who looked like he was complimenting himself and another one who looked at me with a scrutinizing look. They looked familiar but I couldn't somehow remember who they were. The one who gave me a scrutinizing gaze smiled and bowed his head at me in a polite gesture. "

It's been a long time, Shizuka-san. I trust you remember us?" he asked and I felt ashamed that I couldn't remember them.

With another look, I also bowed my head and spoke, "I'm sorry, but I can't seem to recall the two of you."

He looked at me in surprise before looking at his younger brother in a calculating gaze. Wait, younger brother? When did I know they were brothers? The younger boy looked at his brother with an unreadable look in his eyes before getting all emotional as he pointed at me.

"You! You're that girl who forgot to use a honorific after my name!" he accused me of...what? Honorific? What did I do? That completely answers my question whether I've met them before but...I don't understand. I looked at him with a puzzling look on my face as I tried to grasp the situation. Okay, it seems that these two know me from somewhere. My head tells me that I also know them but my brain can't make me remember when and where I met them. Man, this is so confusing!

"I-I'm sorry but I don't know what you're talking about," I replied as honestly as I could, hoping that it would sate his anger but it backfired on me as I was jumped. Something tells me that I've been in this kind of situation before.

"What do you mean you don't know what I'm talking about? You can't have forgotten about me, Uchiha Sasuke, have you?" he growled, bumping his forehead with mine in anger as he stared at me with expressive coal black eyes. I stared at those pair of eyes for a long minute as I tried to process the event in my mind. I don't really have a clue who the fuck this guy is but something tells me that I should stop his anger. Those eyes... They were extremely familiar... Where had I seen them before? Then my eyes widened as realization came to hit me at full force. I tried to push him off me but the annoying kid just had to knee my stomach as I doubled over in pain. In a moment of pure reflex, I pulled out a kunai and threw it at him, barely missing his face by mere centimeters. He was petrified at that spot as I crawled my way away from him, clutching my stomach like I was poisoned.

"What in the world? What did you do that for, duck-butt?" I sneered, unintentionally using the nickname I thought of for him when I went home that day. Don't blame for the childish nickname! His hair is just like a duck's butt with gravity defying spikes like that. I could tell he didn't like that nickname one bit and tried to jump me again but I was prepared this time so I kicked him on the stomach as well. Hey, it was for revenge and I am a type who holds grudges. It's his fault for kneeing me! He glared at me and I glared at him, both of us clutching our stomachs. I don't have the clear image of our first meeting in my memory but I clearly remember that ridiculous hair!

Once again, Itachi coughed to break us from the glaring contest we ensued, both of us blinking at the same time, AGAIN. This time, I was in a competitive mood.

"I win!" we simultaneously announced, pointing a finger at each other. We both glared again at each other.

"You blinked first!" he retaliated.

"No! You did!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"I did NOT blink first and that's final!" he exclaimed as he sat down with his arms crossed over his chest.

To tell everyone frankly, I was having fun with arguing with Sasuke. Arguably, he had the same temper as me and I briefly wondered if that was because he was a kid. I was mentally twelve years old but I prided myself on being able to live properly even with that mindset. I snorted and threw up my arms in surrender, something that he smirked smugly at. Honestly, this kid! I'd only met him for two times and neither were proper but I already have a nagging feeling that he liked showing off. Especially in front of his brother.

I sighed and reached to my pouch, not missing the flinch from Sasuke. I nearly laughed. What? He was scared that I might impale him by some dull edged kunai? What a joke. I just pulled out another skuriken and threw it at an unsuspecting tree with deadly accuracy I'd been practicing ever since I knew how to throw a metallic version of a star. At once, a metalic wire snapped and numerous kunais and shurikens came tumbling down from the tree branches, all held by a wire. I walked to the tree nearest to my position and touched the tree branch before infusing it with chakra. I pulled and all the weapons came at me at once like I was reeling them with the wire. Well, technically I was but I just used chakra threads to do that. The wires and weapons were safely hidden inside the tree trunk. I paused and admired my handiwork before turning around to give both brothers a glare. Itachi was not the least surprised as he had been watching the girl train for at least a week now and based on his observations, hiding the wires inside a tree trunk meant that her training was over, for the weapons part at least.

I looked at Sasuke and and raised an eyebrow in amusement as his eyes widened at my trick. I learned it directly from my father but added a few twists of my own. Really, it served no purpose but to hide my materials. I'm sure one of the Uchiha that actually put effort into their training had noticed my weapons already. And I had a suspicion Itachi was one of them. Yes, yes. I only remembered his name jut a few minutes ago. Please don't reprimand me for something that I couldn't control.

"H-How did you do that?" Sasuke asked, turning his gaze at me as he pointed at the tree trunk I was resting my hand on at the moment. I grinned at him and decided it was time to show him what I was made of. Father had been training me on Taijutsu for a year since I learned how to kick their faces to wake them up and I could say I had a fair chance of beating Sasuke with it despite of him being a boy. I simply didn't believe on the fact that boys were stronger than us girls and that it was natural for a girl to be beaten by a boy.

"I learned it from my father! He's amazing and a very skilled shinobi!" I bragged, truly proud to be my father's daughter. He was lucky to have me. Sasuke seem to hate losing even with trivial matter such as this.

"Well, my nii-san is much more amazing! He graduated from the academy at age seven and was the top rookie of the year, you know! Not to mention he's also the heir of our clan!" he explained, smirking at me smugly as I felt my jaw slacken in shock. What? Heir? Who is? I looked over at Itachi who gave me a firm nod in response. I paled. I've been talking so disrespectfully to such important people this whole time? If Sasuke was Itachi's brother, that meant that he was also royalty to the clan. I gulped and straightened my posture before bowing my head in shame. Father had always taught me to be polite but I felt that these two understood me so I never bothered on applying politeness with them. Oh God... To think I called Sasuke sich a hidepus nickname...

"I am deeply sorry for my rude disposition, Itachi-sama and Sasuke-sama! I didn't know that you were the heir to the Uchiha Clan. For that, I beg your forgiveness," I pressed on, ashamed of myself. I don't think I could look at any kid like me in the eye for a decade or so after this. I underestimated them. To think they were the equivalent of princes just made the situation more worse. I heard Sasuke growl and my face was sandwiched between two small hands as I was forced to look at the beholder. He was angry and I didn't know why. I didn't do anything wrong right? God forsake me for this...

Father would lecture me for a long while just for this. I closed my eyes as I waited for the oncoming insults but a bump on my forehead just made me snap my eyes open in shock.

"Stop calling me that!"

I gaped. I absolutely had no idea of what he was talking about. Judging from my reaction, he groaned and let go of me. I blinked and stares at him as he made his way back over his brother, glancing at me ever so often as I tried to process his words. Before I arrived to any conclusion though, I felt killing intent and immediately snapped my head to Itachi, eyes wide in shock. As soon as I had eye contact with him, he held me there before the killing intent disappeared. He smiled at me.

"I see that you at least can sense blood lust. If that is true, I want you to take a guess to what Sasuke is feeling, Shizuka-san," he directed my eyes to Sasuke who just looked at me before clutching his brother's pants to hide his face. I raised an eyebrow at Itachi to Sasuke's behavior to which he jut shook his head at. Itachi was the heir to our clan and Sasuke was his brother. Wow. Why didn't I realize sooner? To think that I had cursed in front of them. My face flushed when I remembered giving grass at Itachi the first time. That was embarrassing! And I even kicked Sasuke on his stomach! Gods, what have I done? To answer his question though, I stared at Sasuke for a long while before coughing, effectively bringing their attention to me. Father always did that when he wanted to make himself known inside the room when me and mother got too caught up in my training.

"I believe Sasuke-sama is upset," I answered and my eyes widened at my own words. I looked over at Sasuke and caught him giving me a scowl with a half hearted glare. Itachi merely nodded before turning to his brother.

"Mind telling us why you are upset, Sasuke? I'm sure Shizuka-san would appreciate knowing what you are so upset about," he commened and I nodded along to agree with him. I didn't like people getting angry at me for things I didn't know. It was just unpleasant feeling like that.

Sasuke looked at his brother and then a grin crossed his features, taking me by surprise. One moment he was moody and the next he was back to his usual self? What the hell is happening around here? "Nothing you should worry about, nii-san!" he exclaimed, his grin not reaching his eyes. Creepy! I shuddered at the sight and that didn't go unnoticed by the small vixen.

He turned his head towards me and smirked. Smirked! What kind of four years old boy smirks? I looked over Itachi for him to explain and saw his lips twitch upwards slightly...into a smirk. I mentally groaned. I give up! These brothers are too much. Sasuke the turned to his brother with a grin.

"Nii-san, you said you were going to teach me taijutsu today!" Itachi nodded with that smirk of his. It wasn't that visible. You could only see it if you have the slightet idea to look for it. The boy was just too stoic.

"Yes, I believe that I did say that." "Then can you watch me spar with her?" Sasuke suggested, turning to me. I narrowed my eyes at him. What was he planning?

"I suppose it would educational to spar with someone else other than me. Shizuka-san, do you have the time to spar with my brother?" I nodded at him. Taijutsu practice was what I was going to do after my training after all so this shouldn't be bother.

"Sasuke...sama was trained by you, wasn't he?" I asked, noticing the immediate glare Sasuke sent my way. What the hell was up with him? I furrowed my eebrows in a thought before disregarding it. Itachi nodded and motioned for us to follow him.

"We should take this elsewhere. This training ground isn't really the best place for a spar," he commened and I agreed with him. The place was small if you wanted to move around a lot. Plus, there's too many weapons lying in the ground. I followed behind the two brothers, attempting to distance myself away from them for at least a meter. He led us to a spacious clearing.

I looked around and was surprised to see my father talking with another man who seemed to have a resemblance with Itahi and Sasuke. I narrowed my eyes at him. Was he their father? My question was answered when Itahi approached him.

"Father," he calmly called out, looking straight at his father. Sasuke walked to his brother and clutched his pants, hiding behind Itachi. I contemplated on following them or not. I settled into leaning against a tree trunk and watch the scene unfold.

Besides, if this was the head of the clan, I wouldn't want to be associated with him this early in my life. The man turned to Itachi and his features immediately hardened.

"Itachi, what brings you here? I believe I told you to train your genjutsu," he stated, his voice calm and stiff. I blinked and looked at the man. Was he really their father? What's up with that tone of voice? It was a world different from my father's!

Itachi gave him a firm nod. "Yes, you did. However, I've already had a spar with Shisui this morning and both of us have used several genjutsu techniques for the minimum requirement for today. Father, may we occupy his training ground for a while? Sasuke-" he didn't even get to finish what he was about to say as his father raised a hand for him to stop.

Itachi clamped his mouth shut and pressed his lips into a thin line obediently. Sasuke looked over at his brother and made a determined face.

"Father! I would like to have a friendly spar with Uchiha Shizuka this afternoon here in this exact ground. I would like to test my skills against another Uchiha who is of the same age as me," he announced, not missing a single beat as he looked up at his father, coal black eyes set into a determined glare. My father raised an eyebrow at this.

"Uchiha Shizuka? Really? Well, Fugaku. It seems that our children have met already. This meeting has lost its purpose," my father stated, smiling gently at the man I now knew of as Fugaku. I looked at my father in pure curiosity. What did he mean by that? Were they planning to introduce us to each other? Well, I suppose that was normal. I was nearly four after all, ad not once have I seen another child in the Uchiha Compound other than Itachi and Sasuke. And I've had a fair share of exploring the compound; well, the East Part at least.

Fugaku nodded and turned to my father. "Tokuma, is your daughter capable of participating in a spar with my second-born?" he asked and I could see Sasuke look at Fugaku with confusion. Father nodded solemnly.

"I believe so. Come here, Shizuka. I believe you took my custom made kunai this morning," he commented, smiling at my direction. Crap. He found out? I brushed my hair with my fingers. Well, he IS a shinobi. He'd be in trouble if he didn't notice that. I approached Sasuke and stood beside him, still intimidated by Fugaku's gaze. Man, could this guy get much colder? I searched through my holster and threw a newly made kunai to my father who caught it. I pouted. It had such a sharp tip too! I couldn't wait to try it put with my training dummy.

Sasuke looked at me like I grew two heads. "You...are Uncle Tokuma's daughter?" he asked me with wide eyes to which I looked at him in confusion. What's the big deal? I looked at father and saw him chuckling. Really, what was wrong with these people?

"Yes, I am Uchiha Tokuma's daughter, Sasuke...sama," I replied as politely as I could, which I believe was unsatisfactory as he cringed slightly at his name. What the hell was wrong with his name that he doesn't like? After that though, all air left my lungs as a furious blush crept over Sasuke's face. What was he blushing for? Itachi chuckled along with my father and I believe Fugaku gave Sasuke a small smile too. Sasuke opened his mouth to speak but was speechless. He tried again and this time, he did get a few words out of his throat.

"N-N-No way! You can't be Uncle Tokuma's daughter! Besides, you're an annoying girl who doesn't know how to call me by my name! Uncle Tokuma said that his daughter was strong! You look puny! Can't even avoid me jumping you! Uncle Tokuma is a liar!" he sputtered other things which my brain couldn't quite comprehend. But I did catch one thing that I will never forgive him for saying though. That one comment about me made something inside me snap into two pieces.

I looked over at him angrily, catching him by surprise. "Now I don't care if you're the second-born of the main head of this clan or not but no one, and I mean NO ONE calls my father a liar and get away with it! How DARE you say all things about me like that when you don't even know me you spoiled brat! Now, SASUKE! Do you have anything left to say? HUH?" I don't even know what came over me that moment but I definitely regretted it the moment I became aware of what I said. Sasuke looked at me, flabbergasted while the three men in the background just coughed, as if trying to hide their laughs. I could tell them something though, their efforts were futile.

Itachi looked like he just came out from watching a brilliant comedy show with his lips quivering. Well, who knew that the emotionless prodigy had feelings? I smirked smugly at Sasuke who in return, glared at me still with that furious blush on his face. He looked so cute! If I didn't know I too, was still a child, I would've jumped him and cuddled him senseless.

"Well, Sasuke. I did forget to say that my daughter had quite the temper when provoked. But don't worry. All the other things I said were true so you can keep your little secret all to yourself with the knowledge that we would never tell anybody about it," father spoke, looking down at Sasuke who just kept glaring at me. Honestly, what were up with these Uchihas? Wait, I'm an Uchiha too so does that mean I'm like them?

Fugaku coughed discreetly, thus gaining our attention. He looked between me and Sasuke. The raven haired boy straightened his posture at his father's gaze although it was painfully obvious that he was still thinking about what had transpired only a moment ago. I bit back a snort. It seems that he knew me from my father although my name and face didn't come up. Why was he blushing though? Must be embarrassment.

"Well, it seems that the two of you are in no condition for a fight. I'm afraid that Sasuke won't be able to face you head on today. I suggest you come to our training grounds tomorrow morning for training with Sasuke. Mikoto will be there to train the two of you. For the moment, Itachi, I believe that your mother hasn't returned to the compound as of yet. Go pick her up from the Inuzuka's in haste. We are having a family meeting about...emotional disadvantages," he stated with a demanding tone, directing his gaze at Sasuke for the last part of his statement.

Sasuke's eyes widened and he looked at me briefly before bowing to the two men before running back home. I looked at my father in confusion as he gemtly smiled at me.

"Well, Fugaku. Your son is more capable than you think for such a young boy so I believe that you should take it easy on him for this matter. I know that you had the same predicament once when you met Mikoto at the academy. Don't think I have already forgotten how much she embarrassed your honorable Uchiha blood that morning," father commented, receiving a glare from the head of the clan. Wow, I didn't know father and the clan head were such in good terms with each other. Fugaku crossed his arms over his chest, his gaze becoming distant as if he was recalling a memory from the past. A ghost of a smile played on his face before his usual frown took over. He turned to my father and nodded firmly.

"I suppose you are right, Tokuma. You're dismissed," he replied before vanishing. My jaw dropped on the ground before my father had to close it for me. What was that technique! I want to learn it? Was it some kind of teleportation technique or something?

"Now, Shizuka. A proper kunoichi doesn't open her mouth like that. It drops your morals." I nodded and he smiled. "Listen to me, Shizuka. You are of Uchiha blood and you must become a kunoichi who will gain respect from others. I don't want you or Jin for that matter to disgrace our clan so you must be trained accordingly," he explained, allowing me to walk beside him as he held my right hand.

"But isn't Jin a boy? Why does my younger brother have to be a kunoichi?" I questioned out of mere mischief. Of course I knew that Jin wouldn't become a kunoichi. He would be a shinobi who will be known and revered by many. That was Jin's dream, from what I heard from him. Jin was a two year old little vixen who looked exactly like mother. He acted exactly like her too. For a two year old, he loved to play hero. And he would make me the villain just for a little thrill. An that often landed me into one of my parents' lectures after the adventure. Honestly, I really love my brother but he was too troublesome for me..

"Ah, I meant shinobi. Anyways, I want you to greet your Aunt Mikoto when you go to their house tomorrow, alright?" I nodded before remembering something.

"Father, what was up with Sasuke a moment ago? Why did he have a blush on his face when he found out that I was your daughter? Apparently, you talked about me in front of him. What's your relationship with the clan head anyway? And why were you meeting up with him in this part of the district?" I asked question after question and my father patiently waited for my questions to cease. My father was always the patient man. After I was done, he chuckled and looked down at me, amusement circling his coal black eyes.

"You're a smart girl, Shizuka. Surely you'll find out after a few years or so."

I frowned. Did I forget to tell you that he was the king of conversations as well?

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**How is it? Is it good, or is there no hope for me to continue this story after all? Please do state your comments on reviews. I would appreciate it.**


	2. Chapter Two: Outside

**Hello again! This is AlyzaAnne0225 with the second chapter of "Tool"! I had trouble with this chapter. I honestly don't know how Sasuke acts when he was a child. I imagined him as spoiled but somehow that didn't click with me when I was writing it so I started over again. I think I started over and over for at least six times before I finally got bored and decided to just wing it.**

**I'm still unsatisfied with this chapter but I don't know what I should do to make it better. If you see any errors, please tell me so I may fix them. Thank you and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OCs. **

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Chapter Two: Outside

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This was so not what I had in mind when I was invited to train with the clan head's wife. No offense to the woman, but Aunt Mikoto was a bit...eccentric. Her training schedule was an abuse to my physically young body. Even for a clan lady, Aunt Mikoto was strong willed and extremely stubborn. She stood by her ideals and beliefs and didn't listen to Uncle Fugaku's qualms about her attitude towards us. I mean, she nearly choked me to death if it weren't for the fact that Sasuke appeared in the nick of time for him to become her victim instead. I almost felt sorry for Sasuke that time. ALMOST. It was obvious that he was trying hard not to push his mother away from him. Not like it would make a difference but the thought counts.

Aunt Mikoto was especially kind to me and I suspected that its because she had no daughter and wanted to have one, even if its just for pretend. Sasuke has problems with that because apparently, I couldn't take his mother's attention away from him too. Aunt Mikoto didn't want any of that crap though so he just had to bear with it as long as I was in their house.

The day just couldn't get any worser when I sprained my ankle when we were running laps around the district. Honestly, Aunt Mikoto was a closet sadist. I just knew it! Not to mention Sasuke was avoiding me like I was the plague. I wasn't too concerned about that fact as I was trying to keep up to Aunt Mikoto's schedule. But he just had to point blank ignore me in front of his mother and a few other clansmen and now we're in this predicament. I glared at Sasuke who was in his respective corner of the room and he glared back at me with equal ferocity. We've been at his for an hour and I admit that my legs were starting to hurt from the position we were forced to maintain. Damn him and his pride. Just because I yelled at him didn't mean that he had to ignore me in front of everyone.

It was so embarrassing to be ignored by the darling child of the Uchihas. I didn't know they were so fond of him! As soon as they started muttering things about me in a not so kind way, I yelled at the raven haired boy about his recent behavior. Honestly, I don't really know what I did to him besides yelling and outright calling him a spoiled brat. Aunt Mikoto broke away from their conversation early and dragged the two of us into one of the many rooms they had. After several disputes between the two of us and the use of colorful language, she finally snapped and locked us inside this dark room after a series of brushing our teeth with a liquid I was sure wasn't a mouthwash. It was bitter. Extremely bitter and I hate the flavor. Sure there was light peeking out of the sliding door but it wasn't enough to make me comfortable. I hate dark enclosed spaces. They make me squirmy and anxious. And it didn't help that Sasuke didn't want to speak either.

At least Sasuke wasn't ignoring me now since he was glaring at me. Just a few hours ago, he wouldn't even glance at me. Finally, I had enough and spoke up, surprising him in the process. "This is entirely your fault you know?" I commented, glancing at him. I couldn't very well see his features but I could tell from how his shoulders stiffened was that he was slightly surprised. He reverted back to normal after a moment and I could hear him take a deep breath.

I knew he wasn't going to reply anytime soon so I gritted my teeth and spoke again. This boy imitated his brother too much that I could tell he was trying to control himself. Too bad for him though. I knew that Sasuke just needed to be provoked in the right way to lose his cool and spit out whatever he was thinking. Then I would have my answers. "If you didn't ignore me right from the start then I wouldn't have to yell at you. Then Aunt Mikoto wouldn't be locking me in this room with you of all people. Then we would have been having a proper training instead of torturing our legs like this. Then-"

Sasuke snorted and looked over at me. "Well if you hadn't yelled at me yesterday then I wouldn't be this irritated! Then nii-san and I would be training right now instead of this," he seethed that I found myself tensing at his tone. I didn't like his tone. Not one bit.

"You called my father a liar! If I called Itachi a liar what would you feel?" I bit back, feeling something snap inside me. Gosh, we haven't even exchanged five sentences yet and I was already annoyed at him. I needed to control my temper. Maybe Itachi would help since Sasuke seemed to be able to control his to an extent.

"Nii-san isn't a liar!"

"Well, father isn't either!"

"I know that!"

"How can you know when you yourself called him a liar?"

"It was in the spur of the moment! I didn't know what I was thinking!"

"Then you didn't know what you were thinking when you decided to ignore me this time too?"

"I thought ignoring you would make things easier for the two of us! I know that you're not comfortable with mother at the moment based on Uncle Tokuma's stories!"

"Well it didn't work as much as you thought! In fact, you made the situation worse! If you didn't hear this from my father already, I hate being ignored."

"I hate you!"

"Well, surprise, surprise! I hate you too!"

We exchanged glares before turning away from each other. Well, Sasuke. Two can play at that game.

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Itachi sat down on one of the chairs inside their kitchen looking exhausted. Although his emotionless mask pertained that his training with Uncle Fugaku held no effect on him, it was acidly obvious to one who had the courage to look at an Uchiha's eyes. I was sitting beside him, Sasuke at the farthest chair that he could get away from me. But when he noticed his brother, he suddenly beamed as expected and stood up to sit beside him as there was another chair free beside the Uchiha prodigy. Of course, I saw that and glanced at him. And of course he just had to catch my gaze, thus sitting back down while looking at the wooden table with an irritated expression. I barely managed to hide my snort as Itachi raised an eyebrow at his brother. No doubt he had expected him to approach him as was Sasuke's habit.

Aunt Mikoto was making us lunch after letting us out of that damnable room and warning us of ever fighting again. Of course, we didn't listen to her one bit and only made our situation worse. For a four year old mind, Sasuke was smart to pretend cheerful in front of his mother. Not so adept in front of his brother though. Sasuke could never lie to Itachi. No matter, the two were prodigies and could very well think for themselves. Anyways, what was up with training today? We've done so much already and it was only noon? What kind of time frame is in this world? When I train by myself, time seem to pass by so fast that I usually lose track of time more often than not. Was I under a genjutsu or something? No, impossible. Why would they need a genjutsu to get us to train anyway?

Itachi glanced between us and Sasuke before making his curiosity clear. "Sasuke, what is the matter?" he asked with a calm voice. That was what I admired about Itachi. He could pretty much control his emotions and hide behind a facade. It would be a great trait for a spy. Not like I had any plans about becoming one.

Sasuke looked at his brother before glancing at his mother's back, knowing that there was no way that he could escape this. He fumbled over his thoughts for a second before I met his gaze and he glared before turning away. I nearly chuckled. "I...uh...It's nothing to worry about, nii-san! I'm just in a slightly unfavorable condition because of training with...Shizuka," he replied, donning that beaming grin on his face again. Huh. So he decided to act.

Itachi was about to ask more but Aunt Mikoto placed a bowl of rice in front of him, thus cutting him off the process. "Now, now! Don't talk about training now! Let us enjoy our lunch and then after that, we will talk. Okay?" she asked and we nodded. Sasuke was happy to be saved by his mother by the relieved look on his face while Itachi and I were just amused by his expressions. I don't know a lot about Sasuke but what I do know is that he was hyperactive when around his brother. I hid a smirk as I watched him look at me before turning to his bowl of rice. I suspect that he was overprotective of his brother again.

I had my first bite when Aunt Mikoto decides to sit down beside Sasuke as well, leaving the main seat open. I looked at it in curiosity. "Aunt Mikoto, where is Uncle Fugaku? Surely, he does come home for lunch?" I asked as politely as I could. If not, I was afraid what she would do to me. And I surely didn't want to taste that horrid 'mouthwash' again. Never. Ever. Again.

Aunt Mikoto also looked at her husband's appropriate chair before looking at Itachi with an eyebrow raise. She expected an answer, as I deduced. "Father has been called to a meeting with the Hyuuga's for a matter that I didn't have the right to exploit," he answered her before taking a sip of the miso soup.

I saw Aunt Mikoto stiffen and raised an eyebrow at her. Was there something wrong about meeting with the Hyuga's? From what I heard from my father, thy seemed to be quie a prestigious clan who has a kekkei genkai which could rival our Sharingan. What was it again? Bya...byaka...ah! Byakugan! That's right! It's Byakugan! I remember when I was running around the compound, I saw a strange looking man with eyes so white I thought he was blind! But he was walking around normally and I didn't see any pause or falter in his steps so I crossed out that thought.

"I see... Are they causing some problems again?" Mikoto asked Itachi and I turned to her, eager to find out just what was wrong with the Hyuga Clan. Sasuke seemed to have no idea of what they were talking about and just continued to eat his meal. I watched as he beamed as he ate the extremely sweet egg roll. I chuckled as he took another one and bit on it in pure bliss. He looked so cute that I could just jump at him right there! But that would look bad in my three year old form so I resisted against it. It's hard! Extremely hard! Alright I give up. I looked at Sasuke in exasperation. His eyes met mine for the briefest of moments before he glared at me and gobbled on another egg roll. Okay. That completely made his cuteness drop down several levels in my opinion.

I turned back towards the discussion again and winced as it seems that I missed most of the juicy details. "Father has thought of several actions that may dissipate their hostility against our clan but every one of them has an aftereffect that would be most wise to avoid," Itachi answered his mother. I noticed how vague his answer was. He intentionally left out why exactly were the aftereffects be most wise to avoid. I wasn't the type to pry into someone else business but I was also a part of this clan and for the most part, I was just curious. And as they always say, curiosity killed the cat.

"Hey, why should we avoid those aftereffects as you call them?" I voiced out, looking at Itachi with the most innocent pair of eyes I could muster. I saw his shoulders stiffen almost for no longer than a second. He turned to me with an indifferent mask plastered on his face as he placed down the pair of chopsticks he used on the table.

He looked at me with a calculating gaze and I knew then that my innocent facade was seen through. Damn prodigy. Can't he let his guard down even for just a little bit? "That, I cannot say," he responded before standing up and leaving the kitchen. But not before giving his brother an affectionate pat on the head and Aunt Mikoto his whereabouts. He gave me one scrutinizing look before leaving.

Damn.

He's sharp.

* * *

#####

* * *

"Eh? Do we have to?" Sasuke whined as he stood beside me, joining me as our eyes locked with Aunt Mikoto's. I stared blankly at her as she smiled and pushed a parcel in Sasuke's arms. The parcel looked brand new and if I didn't know better, I would've thought that Aunt Mikoto wrapped it up just after our training session when we were relaxing beside the river. Well, I was swimming while Sasuke just had his feet under the water.

We were in the second week of training and Aunt Mikoto proved to be a trustworthy teacher for both of us. I grew to be fond of the clan lady. I was practically living in their house with every day being training for me. Mother often came over to check how we were doing but I didn't have time to talk to her. Father occasionally gave us visits and very time, he would piss off Sasuke about after a private conversation with him. The raven haired boy always, ALWAYS, lets out his frustration at me after that at our training. If I didn't know better, I would think he was angry at me. And again, for reasons I don't know.

Sasuke gave a disgruntled sigh as he secured the parcel in his arms so it wouldn't fall off. Aunt Mikoto smiled and gave the both of us pats on the head. "Alright. I need the two of you to deliver this to Haruno Sakura. She's often at the hospital so you should go there first," she instructed as I tried to keep myself from jumping out and down in glee.

I've never been outside of the district before! I wonder if the village would look different... Aunt Mikoto turned to Sasuke. "Sasuke, you know the way to the hospital, right?" she asked to which Sasuke nodded at. She gave a nod and continued. "Now, get out there and do your stuff! I need the two of you to come back before seven so you can take your time," she stated before winking at her son. Sasuke sputtered before trying to force down a blush.

He turned his head away from his giggling mother. "Hmph! We don't need four hours to go to the hospital!" he hollered, stomping out of the room. I followed him with wide eyes, ignoring the roar of laughter behind us as I closed the door, immediately silencing the laughter. I sighed in relief before watching as Sasuke walked down the hallway, surely headed for the main gate.

I followed him in silence, not knowing what to say to start a conversation. Even though I've been around him for two weeks, he still hadn't stopped ignoring me except for taijutsu practice where we had to spar against each other. Even then, he didn't look at me in the eye for no longer than three seconds. I honestly don't know what's wrong with him. No one can be mad for two weeks over such a trivial matter, right? I know he hates my guts and vice versa but that doesn't mean he should pretend that I wasn't there. It was like I didn't exist to him. And I hated that. Seriously, if he kept this up, I will snap.

Sasuke stopped in front of the gate and turned to a shinobi who was guarding the gates at that moment to explain where we were going to go. Seriously, this clan is too paranoid about two kids going out in the village. That was the sole reason I couldn't go outside the district. Well, other than my parents' rules of course. But Aunt Mikoto's orders overrides theirs anytime so I wasn't in any trouble. At all.

"...Are you sure that you should go out of the district? We can deliver that for you to make it easier," the male shinobi suggested, causing Sasuke to shake his head at him in annoyance. It seems that he had been trying to get past him for a while now if that exasperation on his face is anything to go by.

"I've been out in the village before with nii-san and I assure you that I know my way around," the raven haired kid insisted, his grip on the parcel tightening in what seemed to be impatience. I sighed and walked towards the two, standing behind Sasuke in case he glares at me yet again.

"We were given direct orders from Aunt Mikoto to deliver this parcel to Haruno Sakura, no questions asked," I butt in, narrowing my eyes at the male shinobi. Man, this was taking longer than I thought. I can't wait to see the village for myself. And this damn guard just keep ruining my expectations.

"However-"

Sasuke cut him off. I didn't know what he did but the guard looked submissive after it so I didn't take it to mind in favor of my freedom. I ran past Sasuke with my eyes wide as I examined the road. There were lesser people walking around than I thought but this was in front of the Uchiha District so I couldn't blame them. I recognized a few Uchiha in a police gear walking around. I think they're in a middle of a patrol.

I spotted an interesting looking store so I attempted to run to it. Keyword: attempted. Something or specifically someone pulled my shoulder to stop me. I pouted as I turned around to face Sasuke. "That's not the way to the hospital," he commented before pulling me along with his hand gripped tightly at my sleeve.

I sighed and tried the whiny facade with him. "Eh? But it's my first time outside of the district! I want look around!" I whined, keeping up with Sasuke as he walked to a direction that he was sure was the hospital.

A pull on my sleeve and I knew I wasn't getting my way. I sighed and stared at his back. There was really something familiar about him... It's on the tip of my tongue but I can't seem to rememner it. I think it's involved with my previous life but seeing as I remember nothing about that, thinking about it would be pointless. "Sasuke, seriously, I want to explore. Just this one time?" I asked, still staring at his back. He didn't flinch or made any reaction whatsoever and that irritated me.

"Please?" There goes the magic word. Please. Even my parents fall for that tiny little word.

I looked at him expectantly when I spotted a falter in his steps. "...Fine," he answered and I jumped in glee before trying to approach another interesting looking store. And another pull on my shoulder stopped me.

I looked at Sasuke, my eyes narrowed in irritation. He narrowed his eyes in return before speaking, "After we deliver this to Haruno Sakura," he stated, pulling me again. But this time, it wasn't on the sleeve of my jacket. I grinned as I tightened my grip on his hand. Sasuke was just too cute!

"It's a promise!"

* * *

#####

* * *

After half an hour of walking, we stopped in front of a fairly tall building. Was this the hospital? It didn't really look like one. But I don't know what hospitals look like so I guess I don't really have a say on the matter. I looked at Sasuke and tilted my head in confusion at the sight of internal conflicts in his eye. He looked reluctant to enter the hospital and I didn't have a clue as to why that is.

I pulled on his hand to the entrance to gain his attention. He immediately turned to me with a troubled expression. "What's wrong? This is the right place, right?" I asked him and he meekly nodded at me. I raised an eyebrow. Now a cold and indifferent Sasuke compared against a reluctant and frightened one, I would choose the former since that just meant nothing was wrong. But he was obviously the latter. And where did I get frightened from?

Oh.

I looked at Sasuke and grinned cheekily. He looked at me in confusion, probably wondering what got into me for smiling for no reason at all. But there was a reason. And an amusing one at that. "Oh! Is little Sasuke afraid of big bad hospitals?" I teased, missing the feeling of having something to pride myself in compared to the raven haired duck butt.

He flinched and I snorted at his reaction. Could he be any more obvious? "N-No, I'm not!" he insisted, blushing slightly as he raised his voice to answer my question. I grinned. He answered too quickly. And if my resources are right, that would mean that a person is lying. But you can never tell with Sasuke so I had to look at his eyes. They were looking at anything but me. Not like I was a thing.

Yep, definitely lying.

"I decided to tease him some more since this was probably my last chance at teasing the poor boy. No doubt he would force himself in the hospital after this every chance he got. "You're not? Then why aren't we going in?" I asked, trying to keep my face void of any laughter as I looked at Sasuke for any reaction.

"I-I just wanted to make sure that YOU weren't afraid of going in!" he sputtered before taking a step toward the large door of he hospital. We were still holding hands so I was forced to follow after him. Honestly, did he really have to use me as an excuse for such a trivial matter? It's not like being afraid of hospitals was a big deal. It's hardly uncommon and I'm sure every that every shinobi is scared of hospitals deep down. That's where they always end up in after a strenuous mission.

I looked around with wide eyes as we walked inside the hospital. As expected, the walls were pure white and numerous shinobis were pacing around the lobby. Sasuke hesitated in his steps when he spotted a certain area inside the hospital but he managed to bring the both of us there, anyway. We stopped in front of a counter of some sorts with a pretty lady behind it. She was gazing into the computer with a bored expression and I wondered if working in the hospital was boring. If it was, I don't think I've any chance to work here.

Sasuke cleared his throat to earn the pretty lady's attention and I watched as her eyes set their gazes on us. She immediately straightened her posture and an obviously business related smile replaced the bored look on her face. "How may I help you?" she asked sweetly. I mentally rolled my eyes at her facade. She obviously wanted out.

Sasuke looked up at her with a determined face. "We're looking for Haruno Sakura. My mom said she was here," he answered with a clipped tone in his voice. He was uncomfortable here, I knew it. For someone who has visited this hospital with only his brother, he was taking it rather well. Not to mention he was scared of hospitals.

The pretty lady turned to the computer beside her and typed for a few moments before turning to us again. "Haruno-san is inside the nurse's office as of now, however-" she didn't get to finish her sentence because Sasuke already pulled the both of us away from her and into the flight of stairs.

I looked at him in confusion. "Sasuke, the pretty lady had something more to say. Why did you leave?" I asked, truly puzzled over his actions. If I knew something about Sasuke, it was that he was polite towards older people than he was and that action right there was not the least bit polite.

"Just hurry up!" he answered, irritation swimming in his tone. I frowned. What was wrong with him today? He started acting weird the moment we entered the hospital...oh. Oh yeah. He's afraid of hospitals. I can't believe I forgot to consider that. Must be nerve-wrecking for the boy.

After another few flights of stairs, I was beginning to feel the toll of it in my muscles. I was breaking up a sweat and I was certain Sasuke was too if his hard breathing was anything to go by. "Hey, do you even know where the nurse's office is?" I asked him, seriously wanting to just sit down and let the feeling come back to my legs.

He took a deep breath and let it all out before nodding. No words again, huh? Well, at least he responded. I was beginning to think he really hated me. Not like that would have any effet on me. Really. No effect at all. I sighed. I'm beginning to think that Uchiha's are the best at denial.

Several flights of stairs after, we stopped in front of a pink colored door, gasping for breath. My one free hand was on my knee as I greedily breathed in much needed oxygen. Damn. I needed to have a bath soon. I hate feeling sweaty after only walking up a few flights of stairs. Sasuke couldn't hide his exhaustion any longer as he panted and gasped for breath. The parcel was still secured with his one arm and I looked at our joint hands. Well, he surely can't open the door with our hands like this, huh? I took the initiative to open the door, aware of his gaze on me. It's not like I liked holding his hand so I opened the door. It's just that I was the only one with a free hand and I doubt he would appreciate it if I ran off again. Not like I can run in my condition but holding my hand was the only option if he didn't want me to run away. Yup. That was the only reason.

I opened the door cautiously and a few voices were herd once it was opened enough. Sasuke and I exchanged glances before pressing our ears at the crack I made by opening the door. The pretty lady said that Haruno Sakura was in here so obviously, one of the voices were hers. But then, who was she talking to?

"...Another mission? Why can't you guys sit still for a few days? We just got back from Sunagakure yesterday, didn't we? And now we have to go back there? Again?" a female voice which I concluded was Haruno Sakura spoke, sounding extremely aggravated for some reason. Well, it wasn't really for some reason because clearly, she was annoyed at her schedule.

"Sakura, we're not the ones who pick the missions that we do. The Hokage does and we need to follow his orders," a male voice answered. My eyes widened at the familiarity of the voice. Sasuke seem to also find it familiar and we decided to open the door wider so we could see if he was who we thought he was. Yup. It was Uchiha Itachi, at your service.

Their heads snapped at our direction and I blinked my eyes at the sight inside. Itachi was standing beside a rather young girl with unusual pink hair. There was another guy who was sitting on the windowsill behind them. He looked like an Uchiha but he was someone I've never seem in the district before. The girl was obviously Sakura and I point blank stared at her long pink hair. What was going on?

Sasuke regained his sense faster than me and ran towards Itachi, his hand still gripping mine, thus forcing me to follow him. Why couldn't he just let go already? My hand hurts. "Nii-san!" he exclaimed, stopping in front of his seemingly surprised brother.

Itachi looked at both of us before looking at Sasuke. "Sasuke, what are the both of you doing here? Where is mother?" he asked, concern in his tone. Well, I understand your feelings Itachi but can't you put a little trust in us? We're from the Uchiha Clan you know and children coming from that clan aren't really best to be underestimated.

"Mother instructed us to deliver this parcel to Sakura-san," Sasuke answered, gesturing at the parcel in his arms. Again, my attention was on our joint hands and it seems I wasn't the only one who looked at them. Whether Itachi noticed this or not, he didn't show it and I only looked at the guy on the windowsill grin cheekily at this. Sakura couldn't see it because it was apparently blocked my a few tables.

"I see. And may I ask, did Aunt Youko know of this, Shizuka?" Itachi asked, looking at me for an answer. With an audible sigh, I shook my head. Mother is going to skewer me for this but I know it's worth the pain.

Itachi nodded hesitantly. Sakura perked up when she heard my name and she immediately pushed Itachi out of the way as she stopped in front of us. Well, me since she was obviously looking at me. "This is Shizuka? The girl Sasuke-kun always talks about when she comes here? Itachi! You didn't say that she was this cute!" she exclaimed, slamming my body against hers. I choked for a moment before calming down and remembering to breath. Goodness. Sakura's strength is monstrous.

I suddenly remembered what she said before hugging me and I raised an eyebrow at Sasuke who only glared at Sakura. Huh. So he talks about me. No doubt it's from what father tells him about me. Sorry, Sakura. But I don't think Sasuke here knows me that well to talk about me.

I mentally winced as her cheek brushed my bruise on the side of my head. I got it from Sasuke in Taijutsu training a few days ago and it still hadn't healed. Thanks to this, I was forced to sleep on my left side. Now, that was uncomfortable. I tried to struggle out of her monstrous grip when she continuously rubbed her cheek on that particular part. Oh the pain! Mind you! I'm still three year old!

Itachi and Sasuke's gears worked the situation and I found myself being lifted up from Sakura's arms. She pouted as she stood up, having to sit to hug me. Yes, I was that small. Itachi dropped me beside Sasuke and I felt his hand squeezed mine.

I looked at him but he was averting his eyes from me. I guess it was a way for Sasuke to ask if I was alright. I grinned at him and squeezed his hand as response. He seemed to relax after that and his eyes made their way to a grinning Sakura. "Oh? Sasuke-kun finally made his move? You two are way too young!" she giggled and I felt my face heat up at the implication. Apparently, Sasuke was blushing too. After a few blurry motions, I held my free hand with my own as Sasuke promptly shoved the parcel in a still giggling Sakura.

I contemplated at her choice of wording for a few moments. What did she mean by finally? I frowned in thought. Unfortunately, I was distracted by a sharp pain on my cheeks. I blinked, staring into a pair of Uchiha eyes. Immediately I knew what was going on and punched the guy on the nose. He pinched my cheeks! Even though I'm a kid, no one is allowed to pinch a girl's cheeks! Did this guy have a death wish?

"Ow! Man, she punches like Sakura! I think my nose is broken..." the guy who I punched whimpered, touching his nose with both his hands. I glared at him with the most venom I could muter before rolling my eyes at him. I punch like Sakura? What the hell does that mean?

The pink haired kunoichi apparently didn't like his comment and smack him on the head. "That's what you get for hurting my Shizu-chan," she commented before coming over to me, the parcel safely on one of the tables. I raised an eyebrow at her. When did I become hers?

"Poor girl, your cheeks turned red!" she glared at the guy before turning at me again. "Let me patch you up," she reassured me before placing both hands jut above my cheeks. A pale green light emitted from those hands and I could only stare at them in amazement. A cool sensation brushed my cheeks for a good few seconds before the glow disappeared and Sakura retracted her hands back to admire her handiwork.

"There! All done!" she commented, throwing her arms around me again. And once again, I found myself lifted up from her grip by Itachi.

"I'm surprised you wasted your chakra over a simple thing like that and not notice the bruise you were rubbing your cheek on earlier," Itachi commented dryly, earning a glare from our very own Sakura. He dropped me beside Sasuke again. I looked at the raven haired boy and was a bit surprised that he was looking at me. His eyes widened when I saw him but then narrowed into a glare as he turned his head away from me. Great. He was ignoring me again.

"Of course, I saw it! I just wanted to see how bad it was! But Shizu-chan didn't really react that much as I expected!" she decided to defend herself, glaring at Itachi. I'm surprised that she even had the nerve to look at his eyes, more less glare at the prodigy. The only person I knew who could do that were his parents and Sasuke. Correction: Sasuke never glares at his brother, end of story.

"So you did notice. And you didn't do anything about it despite that," Itachi retaliated. I'm surprised he even replied.

"Well, Itachi, if you think I can't do anything about it, why don't you try?"

"I didn't say that you couldn't do anything about it."

"It was implied. Now let's see you try, showoff."

Itachi looked at Sakura for a moment before nodding with a defeated expression on his face. "Very well," he answered before turning towards me. I looked at him with wide eyes, not believing that Itachi would lose in a verbal argument.

"Don't move, Shizuka," he warned me before placing a hand on the side of my head where my bruise was located. I stilled and watched as another pale green glow emitted from his hand. I wonder if I could do that too...

"Uh...Sakura-chan? I don't think you're going to save face by doing this. You know Itachi. He can do pretty much everything," the guy with a now bleeding nose started, trying to stop the blood flow. He looked hilarious like that.

"I know that! Shut up, Shisui!" Sakura hissed as she transfixed her glare on her poor teammate. So Shisui was this guy's name? Third person I know who has S as their initial letter in their names. Not including me of course.

Sooner than I expected, Itachi's hand retracted and I lifted a hand to where my bruise was located to touch it. I felt nothing but my scalp. Basically, it felt normal. No pain, whatsoever. I grinned at Itachi. "Thanks for the treatment, Itachi-nii!" I hollered, jumping at Itachi. I looked up at Sasuke and smirked when I felt his glare on me. He still has a brother complex. Ha, what fun.

Itachi merely stumbled in surprise but regained his bearings a moment later. "You're welcome, Shizuka," he replied before I removed myself from his arms with a grin. I walked back at Sasuke with a smug look as he glared at me. Haha! It's so fun to tease him! At least he's acknowledging my presence now.

"I thought she's your cousin, Itachi?" Sakura asked, looking at the prodigy with her jade green eyes. It was my first time seeing a person with such an unusual hair and eye color. Well, I've never really looked at other people before. Now that I think about it, mother has red hair too so is her hair unusual also? Huh? This is getting me confused?

Itachi nodded. "She is. If she is our sibling, then Sasuke would have a problem wouldn't he?" Itachi commented as he looked at Sasuke along with his team. Yeah, he would have a nuisance around him all the time. Now that's what I consider a problem. But with the blush on Sasuke's face, I doubt that my thoughts were the right ones.

Sasuke coughed as he forced himself to smile. "Well, now that that's done and over, we're going home now! See you, nii-san!" he stated, walking towards the door in hurried steps. I wonder what he's in such a haste for. Then my previous excitement came back and I remembered what I was so happy for.

I followed him, but not before looking at Sakura. "Onee-chan, please each me that technique you did some time in the future, okay?" I exclaimed, watching as she grinned at me and nodded before following after Sasuke again. Honestly, he walks too fast for someone who was just exhausted a few minutes ago.

"Sasuke, you said I could explore the village after this! Let's go!" I announced, grabbing his hand as I ran down the torturous flight of stairs again. I could hear his shock as he tried to keep up with me. A few moments later, he tightened his grip on my hand as he caught up, running beside me.

"...Hn."

I grinned.

* * *

**So, how was it? Please tell me I didn't just ruin your image of cool and aloof Sasuke? He's just a kid, right? And kids have to be childish! Now I'm just denying that I'm not in any wrong. Just ignore me. Please.  
**

**Anyways, thank you for reading this chapter and thank you for not getting bored with it. I know it's slow at first but I'm trying to introduce my OC with most of the major characters in this story before the plot finally picks up the pace. **

**If you enjoyed it, please review! I would greatly appreciate it!**


	3. Chapter 3: Naruto and Kaishi

**A/N:**

**Hiya! This chapter came in a bit late. I had trouble with Sasuke as usual. He's just so difficult to control. I can't wait when I finally reach the graduation exam! **

**Please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Just my OCs.**

* * *

Chapter Three: Naruto and Kaishi

I looked around the village, eyes wide as I saw numerous shinobis jumping from roof to roof. Others were walking down the road with some of their friends and teammates but I noticed that a lot were just looking around. Much like the police from the Uchiha. Were they also on patrol? So shinobis also goes on patrols. I wonder who directs them.

"Hey, Sasuke?" I call out, turning my head over to him. He turned his head to look at me before sending me a questioning glance. I suppose that was enough to ensure that he's listening. "Who's the strongest shinobi in Konoha?" I asked, twisting my original question a little bit.

He glances at me before looking straight at the road we were walking on again. "The Hokage's the strongest shinobi in this village," he answered, stooping in his tracks. I stopped momentarily after him and raised an eyebrow when he pointed at somewhere. "There, that mountain over there. The fourth one is our current Hokage. I think his name was Namikaze..." he stopped, pausing over to think.

While he raced in his thoughts, I fixed my gaze to the mountain he was pointing at. The mountain was huge and was probably visible to everyone in the village. Sure enough, there were four faces on the mountain. I looked at each and every one of them before scrunching up my nose. They look weird. I hope that the real person doesn't look like that.

"It's Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime," a voice from behind us spoke. The both of us swerved around to see who had spoken. I raised an eyebrow when a boy who was a head taller than us looked down. I looked at his eyes. A Hyuuga? No, his eyes were of a much darker color than a Hyuuga's eyes. A shade or two darker perhaps. My eyes widened when a blob of green hair came to my sight. It was almost as weird as Sakura's! I gaped openly at the color of hair, fully aware that the two boys are looking at me. One with confusion and one with amusement.

Was his hair dyed? As if he could read my thoughts, he smiled. "No, my hair color is natural," he spoke, smiling down at me. At that revelation, I reached up to his hair and pulled on it carefully. He seemed to know of my intentions and hung his head over slightly so I could see better. I pulled on his green hair and looked at the roots, eager to see if he was lying about his hair color or not. My eyes gleamed when I saw that it was really green, all the way to te roots. I was about to experiment some more but a hand pulled on my wrist, yanking one of my hands out of the green blob of hair.

I looked at Sasuke and raised an eyebrow when he dropped the had he pulled and pulled the other one. To save him trouble I let go of the green hair. The boy straightened his head again, still smiling. I looked at Sasuke and saw him touching his hair discreetly. I raised an eyebrow at this in amusement. "Don't worry, Sasuke. Your hair is even stranger than his so don't get all jealous about it. If you want, we can dye your hair pink like Onee-chan's so it will look even stranger," I joked, planting a hand on his shoulder.

When he glanced at it, my eyes widened and immediately retreated my hand like it had burned from touching him. He looked at me skeptically before turning his head away. That was close. I thought he was going to incinerate my hand. Wait... Why does that sound so familiar? Oh well.

I glanced at him again before fixing my gaze at the boy in front of us. Who, by the way, had taken fancy to juggling a few kunais in his hand. I watched in mild amusement before I spoke up. "How come you know the name of the Hokage?" I asked stupidly, not knowing what else to say.

He stopped juggling the weapons and placed inside a pouch before turning to us. "Well, I am living with him. Besides, not knowing the name of your village's Kage, you need a few introductions don't you? Bet you don't even know that he has a son," he answered, cocking his head.

To my disbelief, I really didn't know that he had a son! I have to read so e more of the scrolls my father has in his library. Sasuke glared at him. "I knew his name and that he also have a son. This is Shizuka's first time in the village so its natural she doesn't know much. Who are you anyway?" he started, stepping forward slightly.

I looked at him like he had grown a mushroom on top of his head. Was e actually defending me? Nah, probably his pride or something. Actually, I would love it if he had grown a mushroom on to of his head. At least I'd have a supply of the plant. I wonder if it will taste weird?

The green haired boy fixed his gaze on Sasuke and a look of recognition flashed through his features. He smiled once again. "I'm Hanamiya Kaishi, an apprentice under Hokage-sama. You are Uchiha Sasuke, I presume?"

Sasuke's eyes widened when his name was mentioned. "You know me?" he asked in what seemed to be a hopeful voice. I glanced at him before raising a questioning eyebrow. What was with his tone?

Kaishi nodded. "Of course. You're the brother of the Uchiha prodigy. I am betting that most of the shinobis know of you. The head of the Uchiha clan often mention you after your brother when he visits the Hokage," he answered, stepping forward and placing a hand on top of Sasuke's head. He ruffled his hair and gave me a look. "His hair really is unusual isn't it?" he commented, talking to himself more than to anyone.

Sasuke made a face and I snorted, making him glare at me again. I shrugged him off and turned to Kaishi. "Nice to meet you, Kaishi! I'm Shizuka!" I started, holding out a hand for him to shake. I've always watched my father converse with strangers and it always start with this. It feels natural like this anyways, so there was no problem.

He took my hand and shook it firmly, making me wonder another line o unnecessary thoughts. I glanced up again and caught his eyes. My breath hitched as I stared wide-eyed. His eyes... They're like mine. I looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze, a need to question his life surfacing. I pushed it back down. No. Not this time. We have company and I won't like it if Sasuke gets curious again. I'll bet he would question my father. And there is no doubt my father would discuss it with me. I can't lie to my father.

"I am assuming that you are an Uchiha as well?" he asked, letting go of my hand. He looked at me determinedly and I just stepped backwards slightly after that.

"Uh... Yeah," I spoke, unfamiliar words passing through my lips reflexively. I didn't notice what was wrong at first. I glanced at Sasuke, feeling weirded out as he looked at me curiously. I wonder what made him so curious. In turn, I looked at Kaishi and my eyes widened slightly as a smirk made its way on his face.

That's when I realized.

I had spoken in my native tongue. He had spoken in my native tongue. That just set the alarms I had in my head. I looked at him disbelievingly as his smirk just vanished and his old smile made its way to his face again.

"It seems that you still haven't forgotten at least," he commented, back to the japanese language again. I froze, my question answered. But as once as that question had been answered, another barrage of questions threw themselves at me. I got dizzy with all the things entering my head at once. How did he know? Is he truly like me? Then how? Why do I feel so confused? Does that mean that everyone will know that I'm like a freak who remembers her past life? Sasuke will think that I'm a freak? I sent a bewildered glance at Sasuke to which he returned with a confused glare.

Kaishi seemed to know what I was thinking and smiled. "Don't worry. I won't tell anyone," he reassured me. "Not if I can help it," he added as he mumbled to himself. That last part was probably not meant for our ears and I took a step backward.

He took my hands in his and smiled. "I'm looking forward to our next meeting, Shizuka. I hope that you have organized your thoughts by then. Otherwise, I don't think we'll be able to have a smooth conversation," he stated, a knowing look in his eyes. I gulped. He was the real deal.

It seems that Sasuke had finally had enough of our conversation and stepped in, completely feeling left out. "I don't have a clue to what the two of you are talking about but I do know that we have to get going now. Mother would be furious if we are gone for too long," he explained, grabbing me by my collar.

I stumbled slightly before glaring at him. He shrugged my glare off and passed Kaishi, still holding the back of my collar. So basically, I am being dragged off by a four-year old kid who doesn't have the common sense to let someone walk by themselves. I looked back at Kaishi and shivered, recalling the conversation.

He smiled and waved goodbye at us. "Shizuka! If you decide to seek me out, please know that I'll be on top of the Hokage Monument!" he announced. I just stared at him before Sasuke turned into a corner.

I think I'll really need to seek him out.

#####

Before long, Sasuke and I were on our way back to the Uchiha district after a series of buying candies and whatnot. I found myself chewing on a piece of pink bubblegum that distinctly reminded me of Sakura's hair. A new red hairclip rested on my head after I bought it from a paricularly cute store just the other side of the road. The owner was quite jolly and it was fun, questioning her all about the combination of colors. But of course, red is still my favorite.

I dragged out a really weird-looking candy out of my pockets and stared at it for a good few moments before shrugging and unwrapping the candy wrapper around it. My eyes drooped when I took the sight of a green marble inside the candy wrapper. There was a strange-looking brown design init. Maybe it was chocolate. Maybe it was something that an alien dropped off from their spaceship and was found by the storeowner who in turn used it to produce this candy on my palm. I gave it a calculating gaze before I felt a gaze of another land on me.

I knew it was Sasuke-because who else was with me-and looked back at him. He was sending me a confused look, probably because I was staring at the weird candy for a moment too long to be normal. Then, I had an idea. It was cruel, and Sasuke would probably get madder at me if it turned out bad but...I'm sure I can live with him mad at me. I mean, he was still mad at me and it hasn't been so bad.

"Hey, Sasuke. Do you want this? It's really yummy!" I gushed, trying to encourage him to take the thing out of my hands and eat it because I want to know how it tastes like. He gave the candy on my palm a scrutinizing gaze before nodding and taking it. I beamed and almost jumped up in joy. I held myself though. Just becuase jumping up in joy would be suspicious. Too suspicious. Sasuke might thinknthat I was planning something, which I was but please get the point.

I watched as he popped it into his mouth and chew. After a few moments, I saw him swallow it and looked expectantly. Sasuke perked up and a small smile fitted into his face. Huh. It must've tasted amazing if he liked it that much. Now I regret not trying it myself. I only bought one because it looked so weird. I mentally sighed. I guees you can never really judge a book by its cover. And I should take risks more often than run away.

I walked slightly behind Sasuke, my hands occupied by means of playing with a small green ball I bought. It was a bit after six but we still had plenty of time left to head home. Besides, Aunt Mikoto never said that we can't arrive home exactly at seven. It was fun, I have to admit. Although Sasuke was unresponsive at times, since he was still tying to ignore me, at least he accompanied me on my trip around the village. I'm surprised he even stayed with me. I guess he just didn't want to upset his mother by leaving me. That would be rude and Uchihas were anything but rude.

My thoughts went back to Kaishi and wondered briefly if he was telling the truth. Well, not exactly the truth since he made no clear words about knowing of my earlier life. Just that there were signs that he did know and that I would definitely barrage him with questions the next opportunity I could get. It was a bit farfethched, seeking him out, I mean. I knew for one thing that going out o the district again would be difficult and there was no guarantee that Aunt Mikoto or anyone else for that mater would send me out in an errand with Sasuke again. I sighed, hating how limited my freedom in the Uchihas are.

Then again, that's what lets them keep the title of the strongest clan in Konoha.

"Sasuke-kun! Shizu-chan!" a voice called out far behind us. Both of us twirled around like a deer caught in the headlights, alarms ringing in our head. Well, at least mine was ringing. I don't know about Sasuke though. When pink hair came, I relaxed, knowing who exactly called out our names.

Hey, you can't blame a kid for raising her guards! This was an area that was often isolated by many of the citizens simply because it was technically the Uchiha's property. No people came out here at night, save for some shinobis and the Uchiha clan. Well, at least that was what Sasuke had explained to me. I don't want to bother wondering why he een told me about it. Sasuke was odd. End of story.

"Onee-chan, what are you doing here?" I asked, stepping forwards slightly as she approached us. Sasuke kept in place, eyes looking at Sakura in an annoyed gaze. No doubt he knew why but I don't really have the initiative to ask him. Besides, the person herself was here.

Sakura smiled and pulled out something from her pocket. "Well, you said you wanted me to teach you medical ninjutsu, right? I pulled out a scroll from my library. You can have it, if you want. I don't think I'll be reading it in the future since I already know all of the basics. Here," she explained, handing out the scroll to me. I looked at it before taking it from her hands with slight reluctance.

"Thank you," I stated, gripping the scroll tightly as I resisted the urge to open it right here and now. It was tempting to say the least. Medical ninjutsu seemed far more complex than what I had seen Sakura and Itachi do earlier if a this scroll I received was a thing to go by. It was slightly worn out as Sakura probably opened and skimmed through it numerous times. I can't say that I'm not looking forward to reading smiled and patted my head knowingly. "Itachi said that you loved reading and probably have skimmed through at least a third of your father's library at your age. So I thought, hey, what will a measly scroll do to a bright girl like Shizu-chan if that is the case? I love reading myself. I'm glad we hae one thing in common. That would make teaching you a lot easier," she explained and I nodded.

Itachi often came to our house for my father. Most of their discussions occurred in my father's study where I go after a long session of training to get my daily dose of reading. I never had the chance to find out jut what they were talking about though, since father always tells me to give them some privacy beforehand. I guess that's where Itachi got the idea that I loved reading. And he was exaggerating. As much as I loved to read, most of the words, I couldn't understand and always had to go to my mother for another lesson in calligraphy. With a few kanji to learn with of course,

Sasuke stepped in the moment after I pocketed the scroll. "Was that the only reason you came to find us? I thought that nii-san's team had to go to Suna today?" he stated, looking at Sakura with wide eyes and a smile that looked a bit sly. No doubt he had something in mind.

Sakura turned to Sasuke before laughing heartily. "Well, Sasuke-kun. You got me!" she exclaimed, winking at Sasuke who shrugged it off like usual.

Sakura stopped laughing and turned serious. "I'm looking for Itachi. Shisui got into a fight with a Hyuuga. His body had met contact with their gentle fist style and now he's in the hospital," ahe explained, looking down sadly. "Honestly, altough he's older than us, he acts more child like," she muttered to herself in exasperation.

I looked at her in confusion. "So why didn't you heal him, onee-chan?" I asked. Was Shisui's wound beyond her capabilities or something? That seemed highly unlikely since she was working in the hospital at times. Surely they wouldn't let a mere chunnin with no extensive knowledge of medical ninjutsu work.

Sakura shook her head. "That's not it. He wouldn't let me do it. That fu-oops... That stubborn guy didn't want me to exhaust my chakra. Hmph. As if a simple basic iryo nin jutsu would use up my reserves. Even if we were just ten minutes out of training," she muttered the last part to herself, only emphasizing it when she turned her head to the side at that particular part of her reply. I chuckled as I recalled her near slip-up. Surely Itachi-nii would have her head in a silver platter if she ever uttered a single curse word in front of us. As if we didn't know a fair share already.

Uchihas were just that dignified. Pft. Sometimes, looking through my father's journals are worth the risk just to see what's going on around the clan. Not like father hadn't caught on to my antics already. He often wrote about political affairs regarding the Uchiha clan but now it was as if he had turned it into a cheery diary. Not that I'm complaining though. My father's entries were humorous and obviously exaggerated.

"And like the stubborn woman you are, you tried to knock him unconscious so you could perform that jutsu. Neither was succesful as Shisui wasn't the leat bit knocked out by your punch and your jutsu was stopped from being casted halfway when the medic squad arrived in the scene. Isn't that right, Sakura?"

We turned our heads to the direction of the voice and found Itachi sitting casually on a post. I raised an eyebrow at him, wondering when he got here. Sasuke seemed to be thinking he same but nevertheless delighted to see his elder brother.

"Nii-san! When did you get here?" he asked, stepping forwards until he was facing the post. His head was bent upwards to look at Itachi.

Itachi chuckled and jumped down beside Sasuke. "I've been folowing the two of you ever since the two of you left the hospital, Sasuke," he explained, chuckling slightly at the surprised expression on Sasuke's face. My eyes widened. He had been following us? Does that mean that he saw what had transpired with Kaishi? His ees flickered over to me and then I knew. He saw it and would bring it up sooner or later. Hopefully later.

Sakura glared at her prodigious teammate before stomping over to him. Itachi turned his head at her with a mocking smirk on his face. Sakura's anger only intensified at that as she clenched her fists into small balls before and swung her right fist at the boy's face. Itachi just caught her wrist before doing so. Sakura glared at her teammate in anger. "How would you like to know...that your freaking best friend...ended up in the hospital because of your inflated ego?" she asked, seething as she swung her left fist now, the both o her hands still filled with chakra.

Itachi caught her wrist again and brought her hands together. He looked conflicted, as if he didn't know why he was being blamed. But if you knew Itachi, you would know that he already knew why. "...Is it that serious?" he asked quietly, as if he didn't want to believe that Shisui got hurt ad was sent into a hospital.

Sakura snorted, her jade green eyes digging holes on Itachi's coal black ones. "That's not the point. Whatever the hell possessed you to gloat about your freaking clan and fucking cousin to a Hyuuga of all people? Tell me now, Itachi. Fuck, tell me!" she hissed, not caring anymore that she was cursing in front of children.

Well, I don't really care about the curses and I know that neither does Sasuke but apparently, Itachi cared. He let go of Sakura's wrist and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Mind your language, Sakura," he commened, avoiding her question altogether. I looked at Sakura and found that she was seething in anger, her eyes darkened to the point that they were almost dark green.

"I don't fucking care about that! Now, tell me what you said to those damn Hyuuga's that made them so riled up that they would use Shisui to let out their frustration! If I hadn't stopped that damn Hyuuga and knocked the life out of him, Shisui must as well be in a comatose state right now!" she exclaimed, grabbing Itachi's collar to make him look at her.

I looked between them in slight concern. I've only met Sakura today but I didn't think she would be the type to get so emotional. She looked so calm when she approached us a while ago... And I would've never thought of Itachi as the type to brag about his standing, even if he had every right to do so. I don't know what to make out of this whole argument. I flickered a worried glance at Sasuke to see how he was taking this and immediately regretted it when I saw his eyes moist, tears filling his eyes. I winced inwardly and looked back at Sakura and Itachi who surprisingly stayed silent during my whole thought process. They sure were glaring at each other though. Well, Sakura was. Itachi jut had a hardened look on his eyes.

I looked at Itachi and almost pleadingly stared at him to get my message. He flivkered a glance over at me and sighed. He looked at Sakura and freed himself off her grip. "This isn't the best place to argue with me, Sakura. Let's go to visit Shisui," he annouced, walking away from us. Sakura inly glared at him before running towards him.

"I need answers, Itachi! Answers that may very well affect your standing in this team! We don't need an arrogant prodigy in this team!"

Itachi didn't look at her and continuee on walking. "Sasuke, Shizuka, go on home. I'm sure mother is worried for both of you," he stated, like nothing ahd happened at all.

We watched them until they were out of sight. An awkward silence passed between us as I tried to gather my thoughts. Well...that was an experience I would never forget. At least I now know that Sakura was...a bit temperamental when it came to her team. Surely that would be good reference in the future. And who knew that Itachi gloated? He seemed like the type to be perfectly modest about his skills unless he unintentionally spoke up. Maybe what happened between him and the Hyuuga was unintentional in his part? When did he meet the Hyuuga anyway? And how come Shisui got dragged into his mess? That just screamed unfair.

I flickered a glance at Sasuke and saw him still staring at the direction his brother and Sakura went off to. He's probably still processing the situation in his mind. It didn't last much lomger though as e caught my gaze and blood crept up his cheeks. I let out an awkward laugh. "Well...that was a bit weird, wasn't it?" I asked him, biting the tip of my ring finger to maintain my composure. If not, then I would probably tackle Sasuke with a question and answer quiz right now.

He nodded meekly, his eyes trained to the ground. I mentally sighed and stepped forward until I was in front of him. This time, I was the one who held out my hand. He stared at it with wide eyes, as if he was frightened to clasp onto it. I saw his fingers twitch for a moment before he raised his hand. I took the initiative and held his hand in mine. Somehow, I found this act very much comforting.

"Let's go home, Sasuke."

He nodded and I grinned.

#####

As I somehow trudged up the path to the main gate of the compound, Sasuke started wobbling. I looked at him funnily as his face reddened by he minute. Jut when we were at least fifty feet away from the gate, he leaned down on me, hard. We fell down, me by my side and Sasuke on his face. It hurt a bit because I didn't expect it and I rubbed my calf in disdain.

I turned my head at Sasuke to ask him why he did that but stopped instantly when I saw that he wasn't getting up. "...Sasuke?" I called out silently, afraid that my voice might break him. I panicked a bit before he rolled over and laid on his back. His face was red, and it seemed that he couldn't keep his eyes open.

I crawled over to him, which didn't take long since I was practically next to him and stared. "Hey, are you alright?" I asked, genuinely worried now. I watched as he opened his eyes and trained them on me. They looked clouded and well...in pain. He stood up on his toes before swaying in place again. I was ready this time and caught him before he fell face first into the ground again.

"Sasuke! What's wrong?"

He took a deep breath and let it all out slowly. I scrunched up my nose at the smell. What the...? He smelled like sake! What the hell did he consume? "I-I'm fine..." he stuttered, steadying his composure again,

I let him as I thought about it deeply. When had he drunk alcohol? I was by his side the whole time we were exploring the village wasn't I? Granted, I let him out of my sight often, I don't recall ever going inside a shop that sold alcoholic products. And Sasuke didn't really buy anything much either. I looked at him again before wincing. I hope the guards stationed doesn't see this. He would probably get in trouble if thy told this to Uncle Fugaku. A hell lot of trouble.

"Hey...what are you waiting for? Let's go..." he announced, glaring at me as he started to try to walk again. Keyword:tried. He was succesful for a few seconds bt ended up falling on his knees again. I cursed and ran to him.

"Hey, how are you feeling? Do you feel dizzy?" I asked, mentioning one of the few known symptoms of a slightly drunken human.

He breathed deeply again and let it all out slowly. "...I...my head hurts..." he spoke painfully. I slid a hand under his arm to keep him in balance.

"It's alright. It will go away. Let's get on home. Come on."

"...I can't..."

His body fell limp and I cursed as I pulled his shoulders to help him stay upright. Now what should I do? Sasuke's knocked out and there was no way I was going to wake him up in his condition. I sighed. There was no choice but to carry him back, was there? If I tried to make some Uchiha nins help me, they would report directly to Uncle Fugaku and I don't want that happening. Yes, I needed to carry him. And probably have to avoid the main gate and go to the back, where only a few shinobis guard it. There would be less people there. The only problem was...

That path would take me at least half of what we'd been walking before and with Sasuke on my back, that would be difficult.

I sighed. This really was a strange day isn't it?

#####

"...Have you approached her yet?"

Kaishi tensed up and looked at his ceiling which was engulfed in a bright white light. His fists clenched as his lavender colored eyes changed into a dull blue color. It was the common eye color for beings like him. "Yes," he responded in a firm voice.

He was kneeling on his twin-sized bed, his fists on his lap as he looked up, his body tensing up now and then. It was a weekly occurence, what he was doing. And it was needed, to support his place of course. He hated it. The way he was controlled by a higher-up. He hated how he had to feel so tense when he delivered out his report.

He held a deep respect for his higher-up of course. His higher-up was someone who earned the trust of almost all the beings of his kind. But he hated his job. He hated that he had to have a boring job such as this. He wanted thrill. He wanted excitement. But he knew that he wouldn't be getting those without breaking the rules of their domain.

"I see. I don't even want to know why you sent your responsibility here, Hanamiya. This world is a complex kind, only one who wants a challenge would grant a wish such as this," his higher-up commented, probably pinching he bridge of his nose as usual. It was his mannerism and Kaishi found himself focusing intently on the center of the bright light.

"...Perhaps I too, wanted a challenge, milord. And I believe it is part of my job as her 'Watcher' to grant her last wish upon death?"

His higher-up chuckled. "I suppose so, Hanamiya. I just don't want you to regret making this decision, as all the other usually do. You are an important asset in our organization, and we wouldn't want you to...turn your back on us."

Kaishi inwardly winced. He knew what his higher-up was talking about. Most watchers like him grant the last wishes of their charge to avoid trouble and move on to another charge when they send their previous one to the place humans called Heaven. Really, there wasn't a name for it, and their kind remained ignorant of that fact. It was highly likely that a charge would wish to be reincarnated into another life, and the watchers would grant that without much thought. They would later regret it when they find out that they're still stuck with their charge for another lifetime and grow annoyed by it all. And you can read between the lines can you?

Kaishi knew he was different. Whatever the case, he granted his charge's wish in a highly different way than all the other had done. She wished to have watched this world, then she would be able to watch it, with herself as one of the characters.

"It is most unlikely that it would lead to that...milord."

"Yes, I know. You're loyal and possibly the best watched I have ever met in this millenia. It is such a shame that you refuse to step up your place. Surely, you have a good reason for it?"

"...I would rather not talk about it, milord. It is...unsettling for me."

"I understand. Think it over, though. We are offering you this while others would kill just to be considered as a possible candidate."

"I see what you mean. Back to the main topic, milord. She is having difficulty with her memory, I believe."

"Ah, would you please elaborate?"

"She still remembers that she had a earlier life, but does not remember anything besides her death. Even then, she only remembers the flames. I don't think this would lead to a proper growth as an individual in this world."

"...She doesn't remember almost anything, you say? That is most interesting..."

"...If it would be possible, I would like to keep an eye on her without...following her around, milord. It is extremely difficult to sneak around the individuals in this world. They are most alert and vigilant."

"...And what do you propose we do?"

"...Link half of my soul with hers."

#####

I panted and my knees wobbled as I finally reached Sasuke's home. He was still on my back, his arms draped over my shoulders as I held them in place. There was no way I could have carried him without any scratches though. More than five times, I fell face first on the cement just because of his weight. And more than ten times, I struggled to maintain my balance before landing on my knees, whih were probably bleeding right now. I groaned. How come Sasuke didn't wake up along the way anyway? With all the bumps I received on my hands, knees and face, you woukd'e thought that he was only pretending to sleep. No, that was impossible for Sasuke. He's mad at me, remember? There was no way he would be awake.

Or maybe he's just out to get me and is really pretending to sleep right this moment.

Whatever. I'm too exhausted to care. I knocked on the door weakly for two times before deciding to let my legs give out. Sasuke was heavy! It was already a little bit past eight and I'm sure Aunt Mikoto is anxious to know where we are. Well, what do you know? I bet she never thought we would be out this late. She gave us a time limit for a reason.

The door opened and light blinded my eyes for a small while before I got used to them. I looked at the person who opened the door only to find a surprised Itachi. Itachi? Wasn't he with Sakura just a while ago? You mean to say that he made it home before us? The hell? Well, he didn't have a drunk Sasuke on his back so I guess that explains it...not. I don't think having Sasuke drunk on his back would have made muh of a difference.

I grinned up at him weakly. "Hey, Itachi-nii. How's it going?" I asked, giving him a peace sign with my hands. I never looked at them while looking at Sasuke but those are some pretty nasty bruises. I think I may have to bother them with a first aid treatment before I go home.

The surprise left his face as he narrowed his eyes, looking at the both of us. Hey buddy, there's nothing to see here. Mind letting us come in? I so desperately wanted to say that. Because speaking frankly, I was beat and irritable right now. And it doesn't help that the one at fault is on my back, unconscious and guilt free right now. I swear I would take revenge from Sasuke one day. Maybe I would pretend to faint and let him carry me back to my house. Yeah, that would do it.

"Itachi? Who's at the door?" Aumt Mikoto's voice ehoed inside as we heard clattering of something breakable louder. She appeared nearly almost immediately after that and I once again, offered another weak grin. She looked at us in horror as she dropped the medium sized box she was holding. The sound of glass breaking infiltrated my ear and I couldn't help but to cringe.

"What happened? Itachi, bring your brother to his room. Shizuka, you are coming with me!" she bellowed, her voice resonating. I swear she would've had woke up several people in the compound. I winced. Was I up for another lecture? It wasn't even my fault! ...Well, maybe it was my fault, for giving him that weird candy and all but I didn't mean it! Argh, arguing with myself inside my head won't help me any.

I watched as Itachi carried Sasuke gently and went inside the house, most probably going to Sasuke's room just like Aunt Mikoto told him. I could only hope that he wouldn't wake up with a headache like most drunk people do. Aunt Mikoto grabbed me by my wrist and helped me stand up. Though my legs still hurt, I managed to follow her without much problem.

She led me to their kitchen and made me sit on one of their wooden chairs. I briefly wondered what she was planning to do when she approached one of their cabinet doors and searched inside. Several possibilities passed through my mind, each one having a negative effect in my mind. What if she was going to pull out something sharp and shiny and metallic and murderous and and-

I was pulled out of my thoughts when she pressed her hand on one of my knees, her other hand occupied with a small book. I read the cover and smiled. It was a book for basic medic ninjutsu. What was I thinking? Aunt Mikoto may e protective of her youngest son but not that much that she would blame another person for his injuries at first sight. Not like Sasuke had any injuries anyway.

She looked up at me with eyes laced with concern. "What happened, Shizuka? Tell me the whole story," she ordered, turning her gaze at my knees again for concentration. She kept glancing at the book every now and then but closed it after a few moments.

I bit my lip in hesitation. I suppose I could tell her. I mean, she is the one who sent us into the village in the first place. I had a feeling that she would have made Sasuke and I give her a detailed report about our errand even if Sasuke didn't end up drunk and I didn't end up almost collapsing in exhaustion. I nodded ,y head. Yes, she woukd have. Aunt Mikoto was sadistic that way.

And so I told her. Starting from when we were having troubles with negotiaring with the guards at the main gate until now. Of course, I left the part when Kaishi spoke to me in my native language and when Itachi and Sakura had a small nicker in front of us. Itachi had come from Sasuke's room to check up on me just in time for me to tell Aunt Mikoto the part when Itachi appeared and Sakura went along with him as she had been searching for him before.

Obviously, I left out also why Sakura was looking for our prodigy. This wasn't unnoticed by the two ninjas in the room. They had different reactions. Aunt Mikoto sent me a thoughtful look while Itachi sent me a grateful one. Well, as grateful as he could get, of course.

Technically, I wasn't lying since Sakura had followed Itachi shortly after he suddenly appeared. Just that I didn't tell her whatbhad transpired between those two scenes.

I hate lying.

And I don't like lying to those who I trust. Aunt Mikoto was one of those people. Itachi was...close to becoming one but he hadn't been spending that much time with me so I found that reasonable. Sasuke...was strange. I can't decide if I trust him or not. Obviously, I don't think he is a stranger. Friend at maximum and acquaintances at the least. But that doesn't solve anything for me. So I shrug it off and go on with life. My second life.

After a few minutes more, Aunt Mikoto finally ceased her jutsu and smiled triumpanthly. She did a great job and I suppose she was slightly proud of herself.

"You can go home now, Shizuka. It's late and I don't want Youko to worry. Honestly, she has your brother to take care of other than you and I don't want another hyperventilating mother in here first thing in the morning. If she could last the night without you, of course," she commented, groaning as she seemed to be recalling my mother's overprotective tendencies at work.

I could still remember the time when she visited us when we were training. Sasuke accidentally sent a kunai towards my direction and had barely enough time to dodge my head from being made into a cavern. Of course, I didn't come out unscathed. The kunai had cut my arm when I dodged. It was from my wrist to the elbow. It was pretty deep, I guess, since it hurt and bled so much I was surprised I could even talk due to the pain.

Of course, Sasuke looked pretty guilty about it but said nothing. I expected nothing more from him. Mother was an entirely different story though. She reacted instantly and was by my side the moment I landed on the ground. I pretty much had to beg her to stop hyperventilating before I catch her emotion and feel panicked myself. Once she calmed down, she healed it pretty well until it was just a beight red mark on my skin. She placed bandage over it just in case though.

I was so embarrassed at the fact that my mother had to be so overprotective like that. Aunt Mikoto found it deeply amusing beneath her concern though. We had to stop training after that because mother made me go home with her to rest. I was literally fuming mad when she ordered me to sleep in the middle of the day. I got out of bed once to go to our garden for a breath of fresh air but alas, not one step outside the door and I was looking at my mother's frustrated expression. Father had to stop her from practically tying me up on my bed after that.

I chuckled. "I don't think she'll last the night without destroying your front door, Aunt Mikoto," I joked, making her join in the soft laughter. Even Itachi showed the ghost of a smile on his face before turning back into his emotionless facade all over again. He knew how my mother was and have experienced my mother's interrogation techniques when it came to her children.

"What are you all laughing about?" a certainly loud voice asked from the kitchen's door. My head whipped around to stare at the form of a beautiful woman with striking red hair that was incredibly similar to that of my mother's. She had her hands on her hip and looked confused. I think she's the type to show her emotions by her actions. And that gesture was just screaming a demanding confusion.

I looked down and my eyes immediately wodened at the sight of a blond haired kid sucking his thumb. His other hand was holding on to her mother's green dress. He had blue eyes that looked so innocent that you would think he was an angel. Okay, maybe that was exaggerating it but... .Cute.

Mikoto smiled wide at the sight of her friend. "Kushina! What brings you here? Naruto-kun, long time no see!" she stated gleefully, making her way over to the two. She crouched and gave Naruto a hug ad a smile before standing up again. To say the least, Aunt Mikoto was probably at least five centimeters shorter than this Kushina.

I looked at the boy who was grinning at Aunt Mikoto now with a gaze I knew I had picked up on Itachi. He was...familiar. Which was odd because I don't recall ever meeting him before. I looked at his spiky blond hair and expressive blue eyes again, reminding myself not to jump on him. That would be most embarrassing because he looked like he was older than me. Perhaps the same ae as Sasuke.

Kushina flashed her a grin before picking up the boy. "This little guy wanted to tell you something," she cooed in a teasing manner as her son struggled to get comfortable in her grasp. His whisker marks sparked a wave of excitement in me and I think my hand twitched visibly as a shown restraint. I wanted to see if they were real!

"Eh? What did you want to say, future Hokage?" she asked, pinching the blond's cheeks. I watched in amusement as it turned red for a couple of seconds before reverting back to their normal color once again. It was another cute moment. Sigh. I'm a sucker for cute things.

He grinned and lifted up his arms. "I finally can throw a kunai in the center now!" he exclaimed proudly, puffing his chest out the best that he could.

Aunt Mikoto's eyes shone at this and I found myself wondering if she was the one who taught him that. Probably yes. She really liked teaching, after all. I'm surprised she didn't want a genin team of her own. Well, she probably wanted one but as the clan mistress, she was bound to her duties within the clan and wouldn't have the time and energy to take on a genin team.

"Really? You have to show me sometime in the future!"

"I can show you now! You know, you know! I want to show Sasuke-teme too! Where is he?"

This rouse my concern for Sasuke once again. I cursed myself for forgetting the boy for even a moment when it was partly my fault that he was drunk. "Aunt Mikoto, can I see Sasuke? I promise I will go home right after," I interrupted them rudely, not bothering myself to be polite anymore. I'm a three year old, and I will act like one, whether they like it or not.

The three whipped their heads at me. Itachi seemed to have taken interest on his nails, probably thinking a dozen of ways on how to cut them for more efficiency in his tasks. Aunt Mikoto didn't seem to mind my interruption while Kushina looked at me with a smile. Her son just jumped out of his mother's grasp and trudged his way towards me.

I didn't bother to move as he jumped on the table, directly in front of me. I looked at him blankly, wondering what he was thinking. On the other hand, he seemed to be looking at my hair, particularly the red part of it. "Hey, hey. Are you Shizuka?" he asked and I raised my eyebrow in mild confusion. He knew my name? Well, that's a surprise.

I nodded and grinned when he grinned. "Yeah! And you are?" I asked out of politeness and partly because I also waned to know of his name.

...Naruto.

I blinked before grinning again. "Naruto? What a weird name!" I commented honestly. He dropped his grin and blinked multiple times.

"Huh? How'd you know my name?" he asked in pure confusion. Even Aunt Mikoto and Kushina seemed to look at us in slight interest at that part. Itachi merely glanced at us with the corner of his eyes before gazing at his nails again. Honestly, it made him look like a girl.

"Didn't you already say it yourself?" I replied, knowing that I had heard his name loud and clear. There was no mistaking it.

"I didn't even say it yet! I had a whole speech prepared and you already knew of my name! Bummer...!" he pouted, puffing his cheeks out, slightly upset. Or maybe disappointed was the right word for it.

I stared at him blankly, processing my thoughts once again. I had heard his name, that was for sure. But he claims to have not said it after I heard it so what seems to be the problem? Well, the problem was that he thinks I already knew his name before he had properly introduced himself, which was weird.

Think, Shizuka. Think!

Come to think of it, the voice was different when I had heard his name. Did someone else say it? But no one else had noticed and three apparently skilled shinobi were in the room. I can't pass it off as a hallucination for I haven't heard of his name before. Read it perhaps, but what were the chances of the books in my father's library containing the name of a small child considering none of his books were recently bought? None. So what was it?

"Hey, I don't really mind if you knew me already. That would be understandable, since I'm awesome and all," he commented, praising himself like it was natural.

I blinked and smiled. "How come you know my name, then?"

His expression turned thoughtful. "Well, Sasuke-teme mentions you once in a while when I see him in the village. And, and! He always tells himself something weird when I call out to him."

"Weird? Like what?" I asked, surprised that Sasuke was talking about me in the presence of another child. Maybe Naruto was a good friend of his. That thought made me want to smile even wider. Forget Sasuke, I wanted to know more how he's like when not around me.

"Things like, 'Dobe' or something like that. It's really weird because why would he insult himself?"

I grinned. Sasuke called himself dead last? That seems a bit impossible. It was probably Naruto who he was calling that but I'm surprised he would even insult a person in public like that. They really must be good friends.

"Oh yeah? Well, guess what I call him?"

Naruto looked eager to find out. "What do you call him?"

I grinned.

"Duck-butt."

* * *

**A/N: **

**I wasn't planning to end it this way but I suppose it would suffice. Any opinion in this chapter would be greatly appreciated. Please review! **


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